Life Unexpected
by Accio Lumos
Summary: Soon-to-be-divorced Elizabeth has found herself having to start afresh after the breakdown of her marriage. Moving back home, she finds herself making new bonds while trying to keep her family from crumbling apart as the cracks start to show. The last thing she expected was to fall in love when she had sworn off it.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:** I know I said I would start posting in January - and I will - but the first chapter was already written and I thought I'd post so you guys can get the feel of what my next story will be about. This story will contain a condition not many people are aware of, in fact, my own child has a chromosome deletion similar to the one that will be explored in this story. My reason for this is that my journey has been an incredible, and stressful, one and if possible, to raise some awareness through writing.

Terminology for those who aren't familiar:

EHCP - Education, Health and Care Plan. This is a legally binding document listing out all the needs that a child with a special educational need or disability (SEND) has and how those who work in the education sector have to meet that child's needs to ensure they receive the correct support and ability to learn. To receive an education suited to their ability and needs. This legislation was brought in by the UK government in 2014 and sadly, the system isn't correctly shaped.

Chromosome deletion - where a person is missing a partial or larger part of a DNA in their chromosomes. Symptoms can vary person to person and it can affect people differently. Please bear in mind that I'm not a geneticist, I'm just a mother who has been through this and has had to learn about it along the way. For more information, please visit who are a very supportive charity.

Council - Every city, town, village etc has a local authority called a council which is essentially in charge of maintaining a community. Each council has different departments to make decisions and look after the community. For example, the education authority is where parents apply for school places for their children with another department in charge of allocating child with SEND to an appropriate education setting.

If I'm missing anything else that I've forgotten that you want to ask me about please PM me.

 **Another note, this story is a modern day setting in the fictional town of Meryton. If you don't like modern era stories written about the P &P characters, please stop reading after the author's note. **

I'd like to also state that I doubt this story will be as dramatic as my others have been. Although, you may get a cliffhanger now and then ;)

Also, I know this story was originally supposed to be called Haven but I decided to change the title.

 **Disclaimer:** The usual applies, I'm not Jane Austen.

 **Life Unexpected**

 **Chapter One**

The four little red numbers on the alarm clock changed from 07.59 to 8.00, setting off the morning alarm. A brunette woman who had been sleeping soundly in her bed let out a muffled groan, her hand lazily hitting the top of the clock to shut off the annoying sound. She rubbed her eyes fast, blinking as she stared up at the bright white ceiling as she rolled on to her back, the sunlight trying to burst into her bedroom through the small crack in the curtains. Another beautiful day. Another day that she had to adjust to having moved back to her childhood home.

"Lizzy? Elizabeth? I heard the alarm go off! Get your lazy backside out of bed." A shrill voice yelled on the other side of her locked bedroom door.

The brunette rolled her eyes. What wasn't helping her adjustment to living back in her childhood home was the fact that she had to live with her mother again.

"Elizabeth Bennet!" the voice shrieked loudly, "You should know better than to ignore your mother at twenty-five years of age."

Taking the hint that her mother wasn't going to allow her to lie-in, Elizabeth brushed the wavy brown locks out of her face and kicked back the covers, hauling herself out of bed and unlocked the bedroom door; only to see her mother was insistent on standing in the doorway.

"Ah, so you heard me then!" her mother tutted.

"Yes mother. The whole bloody street can hear you, you know." Elizabeth yawned.

"Get downstairs then for some breakfast. Your father has just boiled the kettle. We're going to need your help today." Her mother instructed.

"Why?" Elizabeth asked, letting out another yawn.

"Jane has a meeting to discuss her options for Lucy. So, we agreed to watch the twins today. And I need all the help I can get with your niece." Her mother said.

"You know, Lucy isn't as bad as you like to make out." Elizabeth replied defensively.

"That child can be the spawn of Satan! Besides, how would you know what she's like? You've been living away for the past five years!" her mother sneered.

Elizabeth rolled her eyes as she watched her mother retreat to the bathroom, closing the door behind her. She headed downstairs and walked into the kitchen, giving her father a morning hug as she made herself a cup of tea.

"Did you sleep well?" her father asked.

"Soundly. Until mum decided to wake me up." Elizabeth replied.

"I'll have a word with her if you want." Her father offered.

"I'll bear it in mind."

As Elizabeth helped herself to some cereal and sat at the small, wooden kitchen table, she found herself thinking, not for the first time in her life, just how different her parents were. Thomas and Fran Bennet were complete opposites. Her father had preferred to take a relaxed approach to life, giving his three daughters the freedom they needed to make their own choices and to learn from their mistakes. Whereas Fran had always been one to instantly take control of things, to try and shape the path for her daughters the way she expected them to live their lives. Unfortunately, Fran was often disappointed by the choices that Jane, Elizabeth and Lydia had made.

"What time is Jane coming by?" Elizabeth asked.

"She's dropping the twins off at half-nine and her meeting with the education authority is at ten. The pre-school is closed today for training." Thomas replied, turning on the taps to fill the sink with soapy water to wash the dirty cups and plates used for breakfast that morning.

"It will be nice to spend some time with Peter and Lucy. I suppose there won't be much time when they start school in September." Elizabeth mused.

"No there won't. Your sister is so stressed out right now."

"Well given that Lucy hasn't been given a school space yet and Peter has, it's no wonder that Jane is stressed out."

Thomas turned to face her, turning off the taps and nodded sadly. Elizabeth's older sister Jane was twenty-nine and a single mother to four-year-old twins: Lucy and Peter. The twins were Elizabeth's only niece and nephew and she adored them, but she knew that it was difficult for Jane and had been from the moment that the twins had been born. While Peter fed well, slept well, developed and learned quickly, Lucy was different. And her niece's differences were apparent from when she was a few months old. Lucy couldn't latch on to breastfeed, she never slept through the night like Peter did, she didn't learn to sit, crawl or stand until very late. At two-years-old, Jane had finally been referred to specialists who ordered genetic testing for Lucy; only for her niece to be diagnosed with a chromosomal deletion syndrome which affected her development. Since then, the twin's father had walked out on them, leaving Jane to raise her son and daughter alone. And fight the many battles she had to just to get some help for Lucy.

"So, does Jane find out if the education authority will grant Lucy a place at a specialist school?" Elizabeth questioned.

Thomas shrugged.

"Well, she's been granted the EHCP but the Educational Psychologist, the Community Developmental Paediatrician, the Speech Therapist, the Physical Therapist and Occupational Therapist are all in agreement that mainstream school is unsuitable for Lucy's needs. So, I guess the meeting today is to discuss the options available to Lucy and whether Jane is going to be granted the transport to get her kid to the school." Her father answered.

"I'm sure the right decision will be made. If Jane is anything, she's a fighter for her children." Elizabeth stated.

"That she is. But the system should be straight forward. She shouldn't have to fight for help and chase professionals for appointments. That's what makes it more stressful." Thomas sighed.

"Sadly, the system won't change any time soon. Thanks to the bloody government." Elizabeth muttered.

"Well something needs to be done. This country is a bloody nightmare. We're just months away from leaving the EU and the bloody Prime Minister can't even negotiate our exit deal!" Thomas said angrily.

Elizabeth stayed silent. She knew better than to argue with her father when it came to politics. It was one area that her father was uptight about. He had his view on how things should be in the UK and nothing would change his mind about it.

Thomas went back to doing the washing up as Elizabeth ate her breakfast in silence. As she picked up the morning paper to read, she heard the front door open and close and her younger sister appeared in the doorway.

"Alright I'm here! Do you know how bloody hard it is to swap shifts at work? My manager says he won't approve any more shift swaps for me." Lydia complained.

Elizabeth looked up and smiled at her sister as Lydia took to a chair opposite her.

"At least you have a job, Lydia dear," Fran cooed, entering the kitchen, "Unlike your older sister!"

"I said last night that I would look online for some today. I've only been back home for a week!" Elizabeth argued.

"Mum, back off yeah? Lizzy has had a tough time as it is without you constantly nagging her." Lydia moaned.

"Fran, just because you are impatient and have this stupid need to get everything sorted straight away, doesn't mean we all do!" Thomas reminded in a sing-song voice.

"Oh well I'm sorry if I want our daughters to actually succeed at something!" Fran retorted.

Thomas dropped the sponge he had been using to scrub the cups and turned to face his wife and daughters.

"Be proud of who they are instead of the fictional images you have in your head of who they should be. Jane is a fantastic mother and still has a job despite the challenges she faces. Lizzy is making a fresh start. Lydia is studying at university, working part-time. Life is-"

"Full of twists and turns, you face bumps and obstacles along the way," Fran said in a bored tone, "I've heard that speech numerous times over the past thirty-years, Thomas."

"Well it's true. They aren't just sat on their backsides doing nothing!" Thomas said defensively.

Fran had nothing more to say on the subject, to which Elizabeth felt grateful. She watched as her mother pulled the hoover out of the kitchen cupboard and disappeared into the living room to start cleaning.

She knew that her mother was disappointed in her, more so than most. In truth, she hadn't thought she'd be back living with her parents at twenty-five. It wasn't what she had envisioned. Five years ago, she had been in her second year of university, engaged to the man she loved. She had finished her degree, had gotten married rather quickly and had moved away so her husband could start his career as a surgeon. And now, she was in the process of getting divorced, had been kicked out of the home she and her husband had shared, had to leave her job and move back in with her parents.

When she had finished her breakfast, she placed her bowl in the sink and headed back upstairs to change out of her pyjamas. She could hear her mother and Lydia arguing over Lydia's need to even be here today. Elizabeth made a mental note that her mother had probably nagged Lydia into changing her shift at the restaurant just so she didn't have to deal much with Lucy. Once she was dressed, she made her way downstairs and fired up her dad's laptop and searched the local job website at the latest job listings.

There wasn't much to go on, many places were advertising for warehouse staff at private parcel delivery companies which she didn't have experience with. A few others were for waiting staff which she did apply for (she couldn't afford to be picky) and after applying for a driving job for a local takeaway shop, she came across one listing that she found quite interesting.

 _Wanted. Child Minder._

 _Full time hours._

 _This position is for someone who can develop a strong bond with children. Must have some experience or qualification working with children. The role requires you to:_

 _-School runs, morning and afternoon._

 _-Activities outside of school hours_

 _-Evening routine such as homework, dinner and preparing the child for bedtime._

 _-Giving medication_

 _-Be trained in first aid or be willing to go on a training course in first aid_

 _Please Contact Alice Reynolds on the provided number to apply for this position._

This job role certainly took her interest, although she hadn't used her degree in Childhood and Youth Studies to work in the field she had wanted to. After her marriage, she had been expected to stay at home by her husband. Pulling her mobile phone out of her pocket, she dialled the number that she saw on the screen, leaving a voicemail message that she was interested in applying for the job and left the information of her contact details.

Just as she clicked the end of leaving her details on voicemail, she heard the front door bell ring. Getting up from the kitchen table, she walked out into the hallway and opened the front door, seeing a blonde haired, blue eyed boy staring up at her with a wide grin on his face.

"If it isn't my handsome little nephew!" Elizabeth greeted excitedly, bending down to his level and scooping him up in her arms.

Peter giggled as she hugged him tightly, his little arms wrapping around her neck before he was placed back on the ground.

"Hi aunty Lizzy." Her nephew replied.

"Where's your mummy?" Elizabeth asked.

But Peter didn't need to answer her question. Elizabeth heard a screaming coming from the parking bay outside the row of terraced houses that her parents house was part of. Stepping outside the front door, she walked away from the house and out on to the street, smiling sympathetically as she saw her older sister trying to wrestle a blonde haired, blue eyed girl out of the car.

"Luce, come on love, out we get." Jane panted.

Elizabeth walked over to the car, wrapping her arms around Lucy's legs as Jane wrapped her arms around Lucy's waist. The four-year-old girl continued to scream as Jane kicked the car door shut with her left foot. The two sisters carried the writhing four-year-old into the house before placing her carefully down on the hallway floor, locking the front door behind them as Jane and Elizabeth caught their breath.

"What on earth is all that noise?!" Fran Bennet yelled, walking down the stairs, feather duster in hand.

"Lucy is having a meltdown." Jane pointed out breathlessly.

Fran rolled her eyes, walking the rest of the way down the stairs and stepping over her granddaughter who was punching and kicking the carpet.

"Honestly, Jane dear, I don't know why you insist on letting her scream it all out. A good smack never hurt any of you when you stepped out of line!"

"And how many times must I repeat myself? I won't hit my kids. It's wrong. Besides, it would only make things worse!" Jane said stressfully.

"Well, there's no need to smack Peter. He's a good boy. So, what's the matter this time? You ran out of her favourite juice again? Her tablet broke?" Fran asked carelessly.

"I couldn't find her tablet so she couldn't watch Peppa Pig. You know it would help if you actually subscribed to the kid's channels when you offer to watch them. At least then you could record a few episodes of Peppa for her to watch." Jane complained.

"And how am I supposed to pay for it?" Fran asked.

"I offered to give you the money to cover the charge! You refused!" Jane scoffed.

As Lucy continued her meltdown in the hallway, Elizabeth rushed into the kitchen and pulled YouTube up on the internet. Typing in Peppa Pig, she quickly selected an episode and turned the volume up the entire way before heading back into the hallway and got on the floor with her screaming niece.

"Lucy…Lucy Goosey…shall we go watch Peppa?" Elizabeth sang, trying to lift her niece up.

But Lucy didn't want to co-operate. As Elizabeth lifted the little girl off the floor, she felt her niece sink her teeth into her left wrist.

"OUCH!"

"I'm so sorry, Lizzy…" Jane apologised, sinking to her knees.

Tears were streaming down Lucy's face as she continued to scream. Elizabeth clutched at her wrist as Jane managed to sit with Lucy in her lap, cradling her and rocking from side to side to try and soothe her daughter. She watched as Jane hummed the Peppa Pig theme tune to her niece and after ten minutes of soothing, Lucy had managed to calm down.

"Lucy, watch some Peppa Peg?" Lydia suggested excitedly, holding out her hand.

Lucy's eyes lit up with excitement as she bounced on her feet, jumping up and down as she took Lydia's hands and allowed herself to be led into the kitchen to watch her favourite show. Elizabeth and Jane stood to their feet, both looking exhausted. Jane handed over a large pink rucksack to Elizabeth, who took it and placed it over her shoulder.

"Spare clothes and nappies are in there. Along with two packs of wipes- hide the bag well because she's going through a phase of getting the wipes out and chucking them all over the place. There's also her Peppa stuffed toy and her juice cup, along with her PECS cards which you'll need to keep attached to you, so she can point and tell you what she wants. There are also some snacks in there for the two of them, Lucy's are in the pink box and don't let Peter near them, she'll throw a fit if she sees her brother with them. If she wants to go outside, there's sun cream in the inside pocket, along with their hats, but she probably won't want to wear it…" Jane rambled.

Elizabeth nodded, taking in everything her sister was saying.

"Also, she may get tired if you plan on taking them out, so her spare Maclaren Major is in dad's shed to take with you, so she can rest. If she falls asleep, make sure she has her Peppa toy with her, she won't sleep without it. I'm hoping to be back before lunch if the meeting only lasts the amount of time its meant to-"

"Jane, go. We'll be fine." Elizabeth said warmly.

"I'm really sorry that she bit you, but she doesn't mean it. She got me yesterday," Jane apologised, holding up her right wrist which was covered in a bandage, "drew blood."

"She can't help it. It's not like she's verbal. Like all the professionals have said, she's developmentally delayed and non-verbal, she doesn't process things the way that Peter would." Elizabeth said supportively.

"Are you sure you'll be alright?" Jane asked.

"Yes. Now get going, you'll be late otherwise." Elizabeth replied.

Jane said her goodbyes to Peter and left the house to go to her meeting. Elizabeth poked her head around the kitchen, seeing that Lucy had settled herself on Lydia's lap and the two were watching Peppa Pig on their dad's laptop. Lydia met her gaze, mouthing that she was fine with Lucy and that she had her own set of PECS, so Elizabeth headed out to the back garden to see her nephew kicking a football against the back wall.

"You alright mate?" Elizabeth asked.

Peter nodded, kicking the ball to her.

"Lucy was awake all night." Her nephew replied.

"Did she wake you up?"

Peter nodded.

"A lot of times. Mummy slept in Lucy's bed."

"You know that Lucy can't help it, she doesn't mean to wake you up?"

Peter nodded again, a sad expression on his face.

"Mummy told me. Is Lucy a naughty girl?" her nephew questioned.

Elizabeth shook her head.

"Lucy isn't a naughty girl. She doesn't talk like you can, so sometimes she gets a bit cross that she can't speak and tell us what's wrong. Like you can tell us if you feel a bit cross or sad. Lucy can't."

"But why?"

Elizabeth bit her lip. How could you explain to a four-year-old about missing bits of DNA and how it affects the way they think and act? It was a bit complex for a four-year-old to understand.

"It's just the way Lucy's made. But just because your sister is different, doesn't mean it's a bad thing. Lucy loves you and your mummy. And we all love you too." She said reassuringly.

"I know. Nanny says Lucy is naughty." Peter informed her.

"Nanny says a lot of things she shouldn't." Elizabeth sighed.

"Aunty Lizzy?"

"Yes Peter?"

"Can we play football?" Peter asked brightly.

"Of course, we can! And I'm going to win!" Elizabeth replied, kicking the ball to him.

Peter laughed.

"No! I win!" her nephew insisted.

The two spent much of the next hour kicking the ball against a goalpost that Elizabeth had drawn on the wall with some white chalk. After running around with Peter, she felt out of breath and stopped to take a break. As she sat down in one of the garden chairs, her phone rang.

"Hello?"

"Hello, my name is Alice Reynolds. Is this Elizabeth Bennet?" the woman asked.

"Yes, that's me." Elizabeth confirmed.

"I'm calling about the voicemail you left enquiring about the job of child minder. I'd like to offer you an interview if that's convenient." The woman said brightly.

"Yes! That would be fantastic!" Elizabeth said enthusiastically.

"Great. Are you able to come to the home address tomorrow afternoon? I can email you the details over."

"Yes, I am free tomorrow afternoon."

As Elizabeth and the woman swapped over details and confirmed a time for the interview, she ended the phone call feeling positive that she had managed to land a job interview quite quickly. Heading back inside the house with Peter to get him a drink, she saw that Lydia and Lucy were still sat at the kitchen table watching repeated episodes of Peppa Pig on YouTube.

"Still going?" Elizabeth laughed.

"She's watched the same episode four bloody times now!" Lydia muttered.

"Shall we get the art box out in a minute? See if they want to do some messy play?" Elizabeth suggested.

"Might be a good idea but we'll have to do it in the garden, at least if they make a mess, we can hose it down. Mum will freak if they ruin the carpet." Lydia mused.

"But how do we encourage her to go out there? Is there a PEC card we can use?" Elizabeth asked.

"There's a paint splodge one that Jane made and uses when she does messy play with them. There's some large sheets of paper and mixing crates in the cupboard under the stairs if you wouldn't mind setting those up with Peter?"

"Sure."

Elizabeth hauled the equipment out of the downstairs cupboard and headed outside with Peter to set up. Once Peter had changed into an apron and began to put his hands in the paint, she headed back inside to help Lydia encourage Lucy to take part in some messy play. It took a while, with Lucy making a whining sound when they closed the laptop down. Eventually they had to carry Peter inside to show his sister that he was covered in paint, as well as using the PECS cards when eventually, Lucy slid off Lydia's lap and followed her brother and Elizabeth outside.

They tied the apron onto Lucy and watched her as she roughly pushed her hands into the paint, copying her as she placed her hands down on the paper. It was mostly footprints and handprints on the paper, with many paint splodges on the grass and the patio. But neither Elizabeth or Lydia cared about the mess. As Lydia had said, they could hose the garden down later to clean it up.

"Are we having fun?" Thomas asked, standing in the garden doorway.

"I think we are." Elizabeth replied.

"Any luck on the job hunt?" her father asked, sitting himself down on the patio.

"I've applied for a few. I've got a job interview tomorrow." Elizabeth said brightly.

"Well done. What's it for?"

"It's someone looking for a child minder. It's about time I try and use my degree for something."

"Well, I'll keep my fingers crossed for you." Thomas said positively.

"Thanks dad." Elizabeth smiled.

As the twins finished up with the painting, Lydia and Thomas took them both inside to wash whilst Elizabeth cleared up the painting supplies and hosed down the garden. As she placed the art and craft box back in its place, the front door opened and Jane stepped inside the house, closing the front door behind her.

"That was quick." Elizabeth commented.

But the look on Jane's face didn't show much emotion. Elizabeth noted how tired her sister looked, how the bags under her eyes made her look older than she actually was.

"The education authority agreed to place her in a specialist unit attached to Peter's primary school but it's not suitable. They can only offer her support for twenty hours a week. She needs at least forty which would include her break times and lunch times, her help with PE, her help in the afternoons. It would cover them changing her when she needs to be changed, her therapies and learning programme. Twenty hours only just covers the mornings." Jane sighed heavily.

"That's awful, Jane. Are you going to appeal?" Elizabeth asked.

"I want to. They can supply her with the funds to go to that specialist school which is a forty-minute drive from here, but they won't. They say that the school is full up. But what it really comes down to is the money. They want to support budget cuts to education and special education which means children like my daughter have to suffer for it!" Jane replied angrily.

"So, why not look into appealing this decision?"

"Lizzy it would take months! I first have to go to a mediator to see if we can mediate with the council to change their minds which is highly unlikely then I have to submit my appeal request along with any paperwork by a certain deadline. Then I have a twelve-week wait before I get my appeal date. It's a long process and she starts school in three months!"

"Is there anything I can do?" Elizabeth asked calmly.

Jane shook her head.

"Not really. But I appreciate the offer." Her sister sighed.

Elizabeth hugged her sister tightly.

"How do you do it? You look so exhausted but yet, you still go to battle to get Lucy what she needs." She whispered.

"I don't have a choice, Lizzy," Jane whispered back, "If I don't fight for my kids, who will?"

"It's not fair." Elizabeth muttered.

The two sisters released each other and shared a weak smile.

"It isn't fair," Jane agreed, "But I love my kids to bits. They're my world, you know?"

Elizabeth nodded, she did know. She could see just how much the twins meant to Jane. Her sister may look exhausted and in need of a break but the way that Jane interacted with her kids, the way that Jane did everything for Peter and Lucy, it was obvious just how much love there was between Jane and the children.

"If you ever need a break, just ask me and I'll babysit." Elizabeth offered.

"Thanks Lizzy, I appreciate it." Jane smiled.

Heading back into the living room, Elizabeth noted that a time of change was definitely beginning for her and her family.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N:** Thank you all for your reviews on the first chapter. This story is definitely going to be emotional at times, especially with what I have planned for Jane and her children.

In reply to a few people who have asked about chromosome deletions, no they aren't a form of autism. In the simplest term, it's where a person is missing deleted DNA in a section of their chromosomes. For example, my child has one which is classed as a microdeletion: meaning she is only missing a tiny portion of DNA. Because these deletions are rare, not many people are diagnosed with them, and they haven't been thoroughly researched by geneticists, so they aren't usually named syndromes. For more information, you can go to rarechromo dot org (all together) which is a charity called Unique who provide support to families who go through this journey.

Also, chromosome deletions have links to autism and other conditions which will be explored through Lucy. However, please remember that autism isn't always caused by a person having a chromosome deletion.

The next chapter will be posted in two weeks.

 **Chapter Two**

"Wish me luck." Elizabeth breathed nervously.

She was stood in the kitchen dressed in a black pencil skirt and white shirt tucked into the waist, with clear tights and a pair of small black high heels. Her mother was busy reading the morning newspaper whilst her father had turned around to hand Jane a freshly made cup of coffee.

"You'll be fine, Lizzy," her father said with a smile, "Just be yourself and be honest, and this Alice Reynolds will like you."

"We'll go out for lunch when you get back," Jane said supportively, "The twins won't finish pre-school until one, so I'll have some time to catch up with you properly."

"Don't you have a shift today?" Elizabeth asked.

"I don't do shift work that often. I go in occasionally to help Charlotte with the ordering but I'm more of a 'silent partner'." Jane replied.

"And by silent, you mean…?"

"Charlotte runs the bakery daily and I do all the admin, payroll, inventory, ordering from home. She does the practical running of the business and I do the paperwork side."

"Does Charlotte mind you are doing the paperwork side of the business?" Elizabeth asked curiously.

Jane shook her head.

"I'm lucky to have Charlotte for a business partner. She hates doing all the paperwork, gets her head muddled up apparently. She knows I'm better with the calculations and the computer side of it. And it's better for me because I can be flexible with it around the kids." Her sister replied.

Elizabeth nodded her understanding, feeling glad that her sister was still able to continue working despite Lucy needing full-time care. When Jane was twenty-two, she and their childhood friend Charlotte Lucas had taken over Thomas's bakery business when their father had suffered a minor heart attack brought on by stress. Thomas had signed over half of his share to Jane whilst Charlotte had bought her own share of thirty percent. The three of them had found a way to make it work. Charlotte ran the business, Jane did the administration side which earned them their own living whilst Thomas reviewed the accounts every quarter and had his share of the profits which covered the bills and mortgage on the house. It pleased Elizabeth that Jane and Charlotte had found a way of successfully working together, ensuring that Jane had the time to go to Lucy's appointments, therapies and meetings.

"How is the bakery doing?" Elizabeth asked.

"We're steady, same as always. Profits are up. We've worked out a system that works for us." Jane replied.

"Alright Lizzy, you'd better get going. You don't want to be late to your interview." Thomas said brightly.

Saying goodbye to her parents and sister, she took her dad's car keys and left the house. Once she was in her dad's car, she began to drive to the address she had been given by Alice Reynolds the previous day. She drove through the familiar streets of her home town, passing by the several places she used to visit before she had got married. She saw familiar people she had grown up with and some new faces. She drove past her family's bakery, deciding silently that at some point she would have to pop in and pay Charlotte a visit once she was sorted out.

She continued to drive until she reached a part of Meryton that she had rarely ventured to. It was the part of town which had been labelled as the rich part. The houses were large, easily five-bedroom minimum, with plenty of garden space to use. All the houses were detached with three-car driveways. As she turned into the road she had been given by Alice Reynolds, she drove slowly and parked the car by the pavement outside the house where her interview would take place. Elizabeth got out of the car, straightened her skirt and took a deep breath as she walked up the gravel path, reaching the front door and knocked three times.

The front door opened, and a woman around the same age as her father appeared in the doorway. She had a bright greeting smile to which Elizabeth returned. She noted that kindness that was evident in the woman's blue eyes.

"You must be Elizabeth Bennet?" the woman asked kindly, brushing a grey lock back into her fading black hair and cleared her throat.

"I am." Elizabeth confirmed, trying to steady her nerves.

"Hello, I'm Alice Reynolds, Come on inside." The woman said, opening the front door wider.

Elizabeth stepped inside the house, instantly overwhelmed by the openness and large space around her. A wide staircase stood opposite the front door, with a neat metal coat hanger on the wall inside holding up a few jackets and winter coats. The floor beneath her feet had a wooden laminated effect, matching the oak staircase that had been heavily carpeted. She followed Alice Reynolds to her right, into a large and open living room. The flooring matched the same as the hallway, with a large black rug covering the centre of the room. A small glass coffee table stood in the centre of the rug, just inches away from a large black fabricated corner sofa that sat along the back wall. Opposite, a mounted fifty-inch screen television sat above a stone fireplace. Whilst the room was completed with some oak side tables next to the sofa, holding up a few photographs and a bookcase that contained white and black cubed boxes for storage, sitting snugly inside the holes.

"Make yourself comfortable," Alice said warmly, gesturing to the sofa, "Can I get you a drink?"

"No, thank you. I've not long had a cup of tea." Elizabeth replied politely.

"Very well, dear. Shall we get started?" Alice asked.

Elizabeth nodded enthusiastically, both taking a seat on the sofa. She noticed the little folder that sat neatly on the coffee table and looked back at Alice nervously.

"The position, as you're aware, if for a full-time child minder. If you were successful for the role, you would be looking after an eight-year-old girl named Mia." Alice began, picking up the folder and taking out a photograph before handing it over to Elizabeth.

As she looked down at the photograph, Elizabeth took in the smiling little girl who she could potentially be looking after. The girl, Mia, was smiling toothily at the camera on a bright day, a few gaps missing due to losing some teeth. Her smile was wide with happiness and her brown eyes warm whilst her dark curly brown hair bounced around her face.

"She is a beautiful girl." Elizabeth complimented.

"She is," Alice said fondly, "Takes after her father."

"You must be very proud. Are you her mother?" Elizabeth asked.

Alice chuckled lightly and shook her head.

"No dear. I'm the housekeeper for the Darcy family but I've been working for them most of my life. My own children were raised alongside Mia's father and aunt. Mia is an only child, raised by her father William. I used to look after Mia as well as my other duties within my role but I'm getting older and can't keep up with the workload." The woman explained.

"What are the family like?" Elizabeth asked curiously.

"Close. They have little traditions that have been going back generations. Trustworthy. Kind. William is a very generous and loving man, he absolutely adores his little girl." Alice replied fondly.

"Does Mia's mother have any involvement?"

She noted how the woman's smile quickly faded as she sadly shook her head.

"Mia's mother died in an accident when she was two-years-old." Alice explained.

"Oh…I'm sorry…"

"It was a sad time for the family," Alice sighed, "But Mia is a strong child."

"She looks very happy, if the picture is anything to go by." Elizabeth smiled, looking back at the picture.

"Oh, she is and she's a good girl. It's very rare for her to be in trouble." Alice informed her.

"It's nice to hear you speak highly of her." Elizabeth said admirably.

"I don't see William or his family as my employers, more like my own family," Alice said warmly, "Do you have any involvement with children?"

"I have a degree in Childhood and Youth Studies which required two placements during my time at university. The first placement was for one hundred days acting as an Early Years Practitioner in a pre-school setting. The second placement was for again for one hundred days, working for the charity Home Start which helps families who need extra support. The support came in many forms. Such as accessing local play groups, getting additional support for families whose children have SEN or are disabled. We also helped families access advice and support to help them children be ready for school." Elizabeth said proudly.

"Excellent. Do you have any experience outside your degree working with children?" Alice questioned.

Elizabeth hesitated, she only had used her degree a little.

"During my time at university I worked part-time in the evenings as a babysitter and I do have some references for you. But once I finished my degree, I didn't have the chance to use it to start a career. However, I have a four-year-old niece and nephew that I spend some time with." She answered truthfully.

"That's fine, dear. Life doesn't always pan out the way you planned. Now, you should be informed that Mia has epilepsy which requires you to be first aid trained in case she has seizure. Mia is also on daily medication to treat her condition. Are you trained in first aid?" Alice asked, reassuringly.

"I was first aid trained as part of my degree. But I may need to go on another course in case my qualification has expired." Elizabeth replied.

"That's fine. If you are successful in landing the role, you need to inform me, so I can arrange for you to go on another course. This would take place at the local sixth-form college prior to starting to look after Mia and will be paid for by your employer."

"Of course."

"The role requires you to work Monday-Friday. You would start by collecting Mia from the house at eight-thirty in the morning. She will be fed, dressed and ready to school upon your arrival. You would take her to school and sign her in; of course, you'd need to make yourself known to the school for security reasons. It's a safety issue, they need to be informed as to who is dropping of and collecting Mia every day. During the day, you would make sure her prescription is in date, put in her prescription requests at the doctor's surgery, collect any medication that has been approved. You would take her for any appointments she needs, such as hospital reviews and dental check-ups. You would also plan her after school routine by taking her to her ballet classes and find other clubs or activities she may enjoy. Then you'd bring her home, complete her homework and serve her dinner." Alice informed her.

Elizabeth nodded.

"Does Mia have any particular hobbies or interests, aside from ballet?" she asked.

"She's been doing ballet since she was three and now, it is the only after school activity that she does. But she is a very eager child and likes to try new things." Alice replied.

"Okay. Do I need to get her father's permission before I take her to any new clubs or activities?"

Alice smiled and shook her head.

"Just let me know and I'll pop it on the calendar, so William can see what she has coming up over the course of the week. He is supportive of his daughter trying new things, so I don't think you finding any new clubs or activities for Mia would be a problem."

"Is the working day a long one?" Elizabeth asked.

"You'd need to be here at eight-thirty and finishing times will vary depending on what time Mia's classes or activities are outside of school. The latest you'd finish is six-thirty. But the pay is generous. You may be required to work the occasional Saturday is William has a busy workload. However, you would be given plenty of notice and additional holiday allowance." Alice explained, handing over some paperwork.

Elizabeth looked down at the contract, reading silently as she scanned through the employment terms and conditions. The day would be long, but Alice was correct, the pay rate per hour was more than what the average childminder would receive.

"The pay is generous." Elizabeth muttered, her eyes widened.

"William believes in paying his staff well." Alice said reassuringly.

"I can see that." Elizabeth said breathlessly.

Her heart was hammering fast in her chest. In the pit of her stomach she was hoping for this job. It would be the start of a permanent change for her, proving that she could start fresh after losing everything she had spent the last five years trying to make work.

"Don't worry dear. If you were hired for the role, you would be well looked after. I'd be there to make sure you're bonding with Mia and that you both settle in well to a new routine." Alice said kindly.

"I love children and helping them learn. I certainly have the time and dedication to look after a child." Elizabeth said enthusiastically.

"I only have two questions left. The first is the one I dislike asking but I have to ask. Why did you apply for this role?" Alice questioned.

The dreaded question that all employers ask. Why do you want to work for the company/person? Elizabeth took a deep breath and looked at Alice directly.

"I'll be honest. I've recently found myself moving back home with nothing to my name. I don't just want a job. I want something that gives me purpose. Something to build my career on. I want to use my degree doing something I love, and I love working with children. Starting over is hard. But I want to use this fresh start doing something positive and I applied for this role because I believe I can provide a lot of care, time and dedication to Mia." Elizabeth answered truthfully.

Alice smiled at her, but this smile told Elizabeth that she understood that life didn't always go the way you expected. The way you wanted it to go.

"And my last question. Do you have any other questions?"

"What happens when Mia is on school holidays and what happens if I booked some time off?"

"We have an agency worker we use from time to time to cover. We would use this agency worker when you use your holiday allowance. In terms of school holidays, the schedule would be adjusted slightly but we have a few weeks before summer holidays start so if you were offered the role, you would be informed of the schedule change with notice." Alice explained.

"Good to know." Elizabeth smiled.

"Any others?" Alice asked.

"I suppose the only thing I can think of to ask if how soon I would start if I was offered the job?"

"I'd give you a call later this week to inform your if you've been successful and William would start the background checks to make sure you don't have a criminal record and you aren't on the sex offenders register. Once the checks come back, you'll be informed of a start date."

"Okay." Elizabeth breathed.

Alice gave her another reassuring smile.

"Relax, my dear. You've done well. I don't think you'll be waiting too long to hear back from us." The older woman said kindly.

"Thank you." Elizabeth said quietly.

Saying their goodbyes, Alice saw Elizabeth to the front door and she exited. Walking back to her car, Elizabeth pulled out her phone to text Jane and arrange a place to meet for lunch.

ooOoo

The two sisters entered the pub on the high street in Meryton, sitting themselves at one of the empty tables by the bar and picked up a menu each. Elizabeth started to look through the options, trying to decide what she fancied for lunch.

"I've missed doing this." Jane commented warmly.

"So have I. And now that I'm back, we can do this more often." Elizabeth said.

"That would be nice. But we'd have to see what my free time is like though. Looking after the twins is a full-time job." Jane sighed.

"I supposed even more so with Lucy's needs." Elizabeth said sympathetically.

Jane looked over the top of her menu.

"I won't lie, it's been hard." Her sister sighed heavily.

"Do you get enough help?" Elizabeth asked.

"I get what I can. Dad and Lydia help me out a lot and we have a part-time night nurse assigned through social services to help with Lucy, so Peter and I can get some sleep and she's trained to deal with Lucy's seizures and medication. Obviously, they are both in pre-school and Lucy has additional funding to help with her development. But it's hard. Because I've had to fight to get the night nurse and they rejected the application before I appealed and got it rewarded. But it's only four nights a week." Jane replied.

"Do you get enough time for Peter?"

Jane paused for a few moments before answering.

"I try my best. Lucy will happily be looked after by dad or Lydia but when I've tried babysitters, she's had a meltdown which meant my plans with Peter get put on hold. Routine is what we've established. On the nights when I have no night nurse, Lucy has an early bedtime because of the sleep disorder caused by her chromosome deletion. So, me and Peter tend to watch a movie or read a book together when she's in bed. But it's hard, Lizzy. When she's up six times a night and has multiple daily meltdowns, I feel like I'm not doing enough."

"If you ever want me to watch Lucy for an evening so you and Peter can have some time together, just ask me." Elizabeth offered.

"I appreciate the offer, Lizzy. I really do. But I can't leave Lucy with many people. She can be very hard to handle at times-"

"I'm sure I can manage." Elizabeth muttered.

"It's not just a case of managing, Lizzy. Her chromosome deletion has caused so many problems that need to be handled in the right way. Lucy has the developmental age of an infant! She can't potty train, she's non-verbal. She needs medication to control her seizures, which have reduced over time, but she still gets the occasional one and must have bed monitors which can go off during the night if one is triggered. She has a sleep disorder where she doesn't sleep through the night. She only started walking a year ago. She's under investigation for autism by the specialists involved with her. She needs constant supervision because she's impulsive and has no danger awareness." Jane ranted.

"Jane, I'm just saying that you need to take some time for yourself. And for Peter. And I'm offering to help!" Elizabeth said desperately, her voice on the verge of cracking.

"And I appreciate it Lizzy, I do," Jane said emotionally, "But I have had to change my whole path and experience things I never thought I would when I became a mother. All because my daughter has all these problems caused by missing a little section of DNA in one of her chromosomes."

"It's like you don't trust me or something." Elizabeth sighed.

"I do, I'm sorry that you feel that way. I didn't mean to make you feel like that. But you just got back after living away for the last five years. I know we talked a lot and emailed, and you visited at Christmas, Easter and birthdays. But the kids need to know you're familiar and once you're settled back in, I'll take you up on your offer. But I need you to realise that Lucy is hard work. I have four bolts on my front door because she would just bolt straight out into the road and get hit by a car. Even if it beeped at her, it wouldn't phase her." Jane replied gently.

"I just feel so bad," Elizabeth sighed, that familiar surge of guilt overcoming her, "If I had come home more and not gotten married at twenty, I could've understood and helped more."

"Lizzy, you were madly in love and married. Of course, you were going to move away with David. And it isn't your fault my life is this way. I love my children, more than anything. Of course, it's hard work with Lucy and I'm still trying to get my head around it. But I've never learned so much about anything before. Her diagnosis gave me answers why she couldn't do things as a baby that Peter could. And it means I can raise awareness about a rare condition." Jane said reassuringly.

"But don't you find it exhausting? You look so tired. And aren't you scared about what it means for the future?" Elizabeth asked curiously.

"I'm always exhausted. As for the future, because her chromosome deletion is so rare and there's few families with the same one, there is no 'worst case scenario' I can compare to. Lucy may be non-verbal for the rest of her life. She might never be able to look after herself. But at the same time, with the right support, she might progress. I have to take one day at a time. I can't plan because I don't know what Lucy might be like." Jane replied honestly.

"So, it's like having a big fat question mark hanging over your head?" Elizabeth questioned.

"That's a good way to sum it up." Jane chuckled.

Elizabeth bit her lip, debating whether she should ask her next question. Hearing her sister talk about her experiences with Lucy made her sympathetic but also angry. Jane had to do it all by herself.

"Ask me." Jane said sharply.

Evidently, her sister knew what she must be thinking.

"Doesn't George ever pay maintenance to help with the costs? He has a legal obligation to pay for his children." She said quietly.

Jane let out a harsh laugh and shook her head.

"I think George likes to live in a world of his own and pretend he doesn't have twins." Her sister said harshly.

"Have you ever thought about chasing him for child support?"

Jane shook her head.

"I don't want his money, Lizzy. I can raise the two of them by myself. The twins are well looked after."

"But I imagine it's expensive with the extra costs of Lucy's disability?" Elizabeth asked quietly.

"That's why I get Disability Living Allowance for her. The DLA is there to help with those extra costs. It pays towards her night nurse and other things that help her. It pays for the petrol to take her to her therapies and appointments. It pays for the upkeep of her tablet. It pays for the extra clothes she needs when she chews through the sleeves. It pays for her nappies." Jane replied.

"I think you're doing amazingly, Jane, but I also think that George should be accountable to his role as a parent." Elizabeth muttered.

Jane gave her a weak smile, reaching across the table to give her hand a squeeze.

"I loved George once but the only good thing I got from him were Peter and Lucy. He struggled to accept the fact that Lucy was different, and he couldn't bond with her. He didn't want to love her. So, I told him if he didn't want to raise a disabled child, he knew where the door was. I also told him that he didn't get to choose who he was a father to and who he wasn't. He had to be there for both the twins and not just one of them. So, he left. And I haven't seen him in two years." Her sister said, her voice somewhat positive.

"I just feel so bad for you, Jane." Elizabeth sighed.

"Don't feel bad for me, Lizzy. Life takes a lot of unexpected turns. Now, let's decide what we're eating. I'm starving." Jane said brightly.

Looking back at their menus, the sisters decided what they were eating for lunch and Elizabeth told her sister about her job interview, hoping that when she received that phone call from Alice Reynolds, it would be good news.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

"Have you made a decision yet, William?"

A man with dark brown, curly hair and matching eyes looked up from the many pieces of paper that were scrawled across his desk and smiled at his housekeeper.

"I'm already running background checks on the candidates. Did you have someone specific in mind, Alice?" Will asked.

"All nine that were interviewed gave a strong impression. But only one gave me the belief and feeling that they would be an asset for the family." Alice replied truthfully.

William lazily threw his pen on top of the paperwork and leaned back in his chair, stretching his arms and yawning slightly. Even at the weekend, he felt so tired after working away all week.

"Which candidate gave you that?"

"The young woman, Elizabeth Bennet."

"Ah. The one who hasn't used her degree as much as she would have liked to." William noted.

"So, she may not have had an opportunity to use her degree. However, it was something she said about needing a fresh start. Wanting something that gave her purpose and the belief that the role we are offering would fulfil that. In that moment, she spoke honestly, and l think she can offer Mia a lot more than just being a glorified babysitter." Alice said defensively.

William nodded as he took in what Alice had said. The woman had been a motherly figure to him when his own mother had died when he was thirteen. There was nobody else in the world whose opinion and advice he trusted more than Alice Reynolds. She had been a constant in his life when he had really needed one. She had helped bring him, his sister and his father closer together during their shared grief of Anne Darcy's death.

"Her checks have already come back clear and I called her previous employer. She worked as a receptionist part-time when she lived in London. Despite her part-time job, her employer cited that she was dependable and trustworthy. He agreed with your view, that she was an asset to the company and he was sorry to see her leave." William stated.

"Will you hire her then?" Alice asked eagerly.

But before Will could answer, he heard a shuffle outside the door of his study. He saw a shadow try to hide behind the door and chuckled.

"You may as well come in, Mia." Will called out.

And in the doorway, his daughter stood. A miniature version of him with a toothy smile. The little girl shuffled over to him and plonked herself on his lap.

"Do you have to hire someone to look after me, daddy? Why can't it just be me and Alice?" Mia questioned curiously.

"I still love you, Mia, darling." Alice said reassuringly.

"That's true. Alice loves us both. But Alice is getting a bit older now and needs to focus on looking after the house because that's her job. She'll still look after you but not as much as she used to." William answered.

"But what if I don't like this person who's supposed to look after me?" Mia asked.

"Then you can tell me or Alice. That won't change. You can still come and tell us things." Will replied.

Mia nodded.

"Did you enjoy going out with Auntie Gee today?" Will asked.

Mia nodded happily.

"Yeah, we had fun. The film was funny, and we went to the park after. Next time, can you come with us?"

"I will," he promised, "What would you like your new childminder to be like, Mia?"

He watched his daughter hesitate before answering. But he could guess what Mia would say. His daughter would want a childminder who was kind, who liked to have fun, who liked to join in on the things she liked doing. Someone who could make her laugh and smile. And just as he silently thought that, his daughter came out and said something that he thought she wouldn't say.

"Well, they have to be funny and nice. But they also have to make you smile, dad." Mia said.

Will blinked.

"They won't be looking after me, sweetheart." He reminded her.

"I know. But if they make you smile, it means that they make you happy." Mia said brightly.

"Do you think I'm not happy?"

Mia shrugged.

"I think you work a lot. I think work isn't fun. Ballet is fun, your work isn't."

Will chuckled, kissing his daughter's forehead.

"I think you're right there. My work isn't fun." He agreed.

Mia let out a yawn and cuddled her father tightly. Will wrapped his arms around his little girl and returned her tight hug. It was the same routine every night. She would come in and sit with him for a few minutes, they would talk or he would ask for her thoughts on something and then she'd yawn and hug him tightly.

"Time for bed, Mia." Alice said kindly.

Mia hopped off her father's lap and went over to the study door with Alice.

"Goodnight dad, I love you millions." Mia yawned.

"And I love you a million times more." Will smiled.

Mia smiled at her father and left the room with Alice, climbing the stairs to her bedroom as Will pushed his paperwork aside and pulled out the notes that Alice had made on the candidates she had interviewed on his behalf.

His relationship with Mia was nothing that he had ever experienced before. He'd been twenty-four when his wife, Natalie, had told him the news that they were expecting a child. It hadn't been part of the plan. He'd only been working at his law firm for a year when he'd been told that he'd be a father and only married for two. It wasn't how he had imagined his life going. He'd made this plan in his head that after university, he'd marry his long-term girlfriend and had proposed to Natalie on the day they had graduated. But he'd always known that Natalie wanted to settle down quickly whereas he had wanted to take things slowly. To enjoy being a husband and make memories and experience things with his wife.

It had taken him a while to get his head around the fact that his plans for life would have to change. Instead of looking at holidays to experience China and Thailand, he was looking at what nursery furniture would look great in one of their spare rooms. His father had gifted him and Natalie the house they lived in, housing wasn't going to be an issue. And Natalie expressed her sudden desire to be a stay-at-home mother rather than work, again that wasn't an issue; he made more than enough to support his wife and child.

Will had supported Natalie through a difficult pregnancy. His wife had severely suffered with morning sickness and needed to be hospitalised on a drip to rehydrate during the early pregnancy. During the second and third trimester, she had experienced low amniotic fluid which required frequent monitoring of growth scans and heart monitors. But the birth had been quite a straightforward experience. The labour was quick, and he had held his wife's hand as she pushed their daughter into the world. And the second he laid eyes on his daughter, he felt a tug on his heart. A good kind of tug. An overwhelming feeling of love and joy as his daughter screamed her first screams as she was placed into Natalie's awaiting arms.

From the moment his daughter had been born, his life had changed for the better. Weekends were about coming home and looking after Mia and Natalie. His bond with his little girl strengthened and everything he did was to make her happy. But his relationship with his wife was slowly changing. Natalie felt that all of their time and energy were on Mia instead of themselves and suggested that they consider making another baby to add to their family. It was a subject they disagreed on. He didn't want another child just yet, he didn't want Mia to feel pushed aside. And while he showered his wife with a bit more attention and love, Natalie craved another child. Something which never came to be.

When Mia was two, his wife had been invited on a hen do, one of their long-term friends was getting married and wanted to spend the weekend in Italy skiing. Skiing had been something Natalie had enjoyed during their teenage years and when asked if it was alright to go, Will had encouraged her to go. It was rare that Natalie got some time for herself and he felt it might cheer her up or provide a distraction to everyday life. So, his wife had kissed him and Mia goodbye and had gone on a skiing weekend. Only he got a call the following day, early evening to say that his wife had died during a ski accident.

He had been made a widow at twenty-six. Mia had lost her mother at the age of two. The bright world he and his wife had shared was going dark. And now six years on, he was a single father trying to make sure that his daughter had a good life.

Alice had been a great pillar of support when Natalie had died. She was originally a housekeeper for his father but felt she was needed more with him and Mia. For the last six years Alice cared for Mia so he could work, his house was tidied and he had a friend to talk to and ask advice for when he needed to. But Alice was getting older and running the house and looking after an eight-year-old was proving too much. It was time to hire a childminder. And he trusted Alice to interview people on his behalf and trusted her judgement. But he also wanted to ask his daughter for some input into what she would need from her childminder.

Pulling out the notes on Elizabeth Bennet, he read through them. Granted, she was qualified to work with children. She had a degree which told him as such. But she hadn't used it once she had graduated from university and it made him wonder why. But at the same time, Alice thought out of all the other candidates who were interviewed for the role, Elizabeth Bennet stood out. Alice believed this woman could give his daughter the care, time and dedication needed. And the woman's previous employer had said that he was sorry to see her leave her job with them.

Just as he had finished scanning through the notes for the third time, Alice knocked on the study door.

"Mia went down alright. Do you need anything?" Alice asked.

"No, I'm fine. I'm going to finish my paperwork then turn in for the night. But tomorrow, could you make a phone call to this Elizabeth Bennet and tell her that I'm offering her the job." Will requested.

Alice nodded enthusiastically.

"Of course. When would you like her to start?" she asked.

"As soon as possible. I'd like her to meet Mia prior to her starting the job though." Will replied.

"Perfectly reasonable. I'll get something arranged. Do you want to meet her prior to her start date?" Alice asked.

Will nodded.

"I think it's best I do. It'll be good to put a face to the name." he replied.

Leaving him to his work, Alice left the study and Will returned to the paperwork he had pushed aside and started to work through it.

ooOoo

It was a nice start to Monday morning. Or not.

Elizabeth woke up before her alarm sounded to the screeching voice of her mother downstairs. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes and rolled on to her back, letting out a dissatisfied groan.

"Thomas, you know when you do things like this it makes me extremely nervous!"

"For god's sake Fran, I went to the pub, we had a lock-in!"

"Out all night! Not home until an indecent hour! Oh my nerves! I've never been so worried!"

"I text you about it! Maybe if you checked your phone your bloody nerves wouldn't suffer!"

It was something that she hadn't missed when she had lived away from home. Her mother would freak out if her father had gone to the pub and had been invited to stay after closing for a lock-in with a few of his friends. Her father would argue in return and their bickering and shouting could be heard throughout the entire street.

Just until you have enough to get yourself sorted.

She took a deep breath and kicked back the covers, dragging herself out of bed and headed downstairs. There was no point in trying to go back to sleep, not when her parents were shouting at each other. She entered the kitchen and helped herself to some cereal, pouring in the milk into the bowl and pulled a spoon out of the cutlery drawer.

Her father entered the kitchen as she had sat down at the table, putting the first spoonful of cereal into her mouth.

"Morning love, did we wake you?" Thomas asked.

"It's fine." Elizabeth mumbled.

"Sorry Lizzy." Her father apologised.

"Don't worry about it, dad." Elizabeth said.

There was a slight pause in conversation as Thomas filled the kettle up with water and clicked it to boil.

"Do you have any plans today?" Thomas asked.

"I'm still waiting to hear back from the interview I had last week and a few others who still haven't gotten back to me if I'm being offered an interview. But I'm meeting Lydia and Jane for an early lunch before Lydia heads off for uni. And I'm picking the twins up from pre-school with Jane." Elizabeth replied.

"It sounds like you have a long day planned. Are you doing anything with Jane and the kids this afternoon?"

She shrugged her shoulders.

"I'm not sure to be honest. We'll probably head back to Jane's to give the twins their lunch but I'm not sure what Jane wants to do. I've offered to watch Lucy so she and Peter could do something together, but she thinks I need a bit longer to settle in before she accepts my offer."

"Don't take it personally, Lizzy. Jane does trust you. It's just hard for her to leave Lucy with anyone who-"

"Hasn't been around in their lives every day?" Elizabeth suggested.

Thomas gave her a sympathetic smile.

"It's nothing against you. Once Lucy knows that you're a familiar person that she can trust, Jane will feel comfortable to accept your offer. Your sister knows that you love the twins, but Lucy only saw you occasionally before you asked me if you could come home because David had filed for divorce. Give it some time. I think it's great that you're picking Lucy and Peter up from pre-school. It's a good way to show the twins that you're back for good." Her father said with encouragement.

"I know. It just…if it hadn't been for David being offered a position in London to further his medical career, I would have stayed and settled down in Meryton…but not everything goes to plan…" Elizabeth sighed.

"What happened with you and David? You didn't specifically say why he turned around and said he wanted a divorce?" her dad questioned.

She didn't know what she was supposed to say, because she knew that if she told her parents the full extent of why she and her husband had separated, her mother would certainly have an opinion on the subject. The truth was, her entire marriage to David Collins had been mostly about her husband's needs and future. David was five years older than her when they had first met when she was nineteen. Their entire early stage of their relationship had been a whirlwind. She'd married him at twenty, right at the end of her second year whilst he worked as a GP. When she had graduated, David had been offered a trainee position to qualify as a surgeon at one of London's top hospitals. So, she'd had to relocate with her husband. And for five years, she had been expected to run the home and only work part-time as a receptionist whilst her husband studied and trained for the role he had always wanted. But that wasn't the only reason her marriage went down the drain.

They'd talked about starting a family two years into their marriage and after two years of trying, Elizabeth had suggested they seek help. The natural way of trying to conceive was apparently not going to work for them and they might need to seek IVF. And when it became evident that she couldn't conceive a child, David had decided that was the final nail in the coffin that was their marriage. He told her he'd spoken to a lawyer, he wanted to divorce, and she had to move back home. She had suggested counselling, but David had refused.

And she knew that if she told her parents the ins and outs of why her marriage had failed, her mother would make her feel even worse about it. Her marriage had been a whirlwind of romance and she had been madly in love. But when it became apparent that David only wanted to focus on his future, his dreams and goals, he didn't think her dreams were relevant. He wanted a housewife. Not an equal. And he certainly didn't want to be with someone who couldn't carry his children. The spark died, and the love was fading. She realised that David was selfish, and her marriage wasn't what she wanted.

In a way, as much as she regretted the way her marriage had ended, it came as a relief. It was her chance to put herself first for a change. It was a chance for her to rediscover herself and find her own dreams, and to set her own path.

"I don't really want to get into this now, dad. I just want to spend some time with my sisters, niece and nephew before I panic over whether or not I got this childminding job." Elizabeth said.

Thomas looked at her with the fatherly concern he usually reserved for when he was truly worried about his children.

"I'm just concerned, Lizzy. You seemed happy and then you call me asking me to come home because you're getting divorced." Her father stated.

"The truth is dad, me and David hadn't been happy for a long time. And now, it's time to start anew." Elizabeth replied honestly.

"You know you have my unconditional support, Lizzy. You can stay here as long as you want, and I'll help you in any way that I can."

"Thanks dad."

She watched her father turn his attention to the kettle as it finished boiling. The talk of her own marriage was something both her parents were curious about. At the same time, marriage was a sensitive subject in her family. Jane hadn't been married when she and George had been together, they hadn't been married when the twins were born and even so when George had decided he couldn't hack being a dad. Lydia was still in university, uninterested in marriage and her own parents had spent the majority of the last thirty years at odds with each other. Elizabeth could hardly remember a time where it seemed that her parents got on.

Before she could dwell more on the topic of marriage, her mobile phone started to ring on the kitchen side. She got up from her seat and pressed the answer button, pressing it to her ear.

"Hello?" she asked.

"Elizabeth, it's Alice Reynolds. I'm calling about the job you applied for." The voice said.

Her heart started hammering in her chest. This was it. This would be either good news. Or bad news. But she remained silent as she took a deep breath to calm herself.

"After considering your application, Mr. Darcy would like to make you an offer of employment. Are you available to come to the house for a meeting with him during the week?" Alice asked kindly.

"Wha…yes I'm available. When would he like to meet me?" Elizabeth stammered, suddenly feeling excited.

"He's around on Friday if you are available. The meeting is just a casual get-to-know-you, so you can both meet each other and sign the contract." Alice reassured her.

"Friday would be fine with me. What time shall I come over?" Elizabeth asked.

"Eleven?"

"I'll see you then. Thank you."

Elizabeth ended the phone call, eagerly looking forward to her meeting with William Darcy on Friday.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N:** My apologies that it has been a long time since I last updated. I had a very difficult (and final) pregnancy with my fourth baby. I hope to update on a regular basis now that things are settling down for me. Enjoy! 

**Chapter Four**

Friday came around rather quickly, much to Elizabeth's satisfaction. She had spent the entire week trying to focus on helping Jane out with the twins, helping out around the house and had even popped into the bakery to arrange a catch-up with Charlotte to celebrate being offered the childminder job. During the week, she had managed to get a first-hand look at just how much her older sister was juggling. Lucy had suffered a seizure during a trip to the park one afternoon after preschool and Jane had managed to show her how to handle it due to her upcoming role in caring for a child with epilepsy. She'd also accompanied Jane to Lucy's weekly physio appointment, quarterly speech therapy review and had signed up to learn Makaton sign language as a way to try and communicate with her niece.

Slowly, Lucy had stopped being hostile towards her and Elizabeth had never felt more thrilled. In the short time that she had moved back home, Lucy had been hostile towards her, often biting or hitting when she preferred to have her needs met by Jane, Lydia or Thomas. And after spending as much time as possible with her niece and nephew, Lucy was starting to warm up to her when she randomly sat in Elizabeth's lap and made a cooing sort of noise which Jane stated was her content noise. Elizabeth only hoped that it would continue.

And now she was stood outside the house she had interviewed at for the childminding job and took a deep breath before rapping her closed fist lightly on the front door. It was a new start for her. The chance to find a purpose and rebuild her life. She had already made silent plans in her head that once she had enough money saved for a rainy day and for private renting expenses, she would be moving out of her parent's home; having grown tired of her parents constant bickering and her mother's constant criticism. It was like she could do nothing right in her mother's eyes.

The front door opened, and she was greeted with the reassuring and warm smile of Alice Reynolds.

"Come on in, William is waiting for you in the living room." Alice informed her quietly, stepping to one side.

Elizabeth took a deep breath and stepped inside the house. She watched as Alice closed the door behind her and led her through to the living room where she met the gaze of her employer. It was clear from the photograph she had seen of Mia at her interview, who the little girl looked like. William Darcy was a tall man, at least a head taller than Elizabeth. With matching dark brown curly hair and eyes just like she had seen in the photograph of Mia. He smiled warmly at her, slowly walking towards her as if welcoming her to his home. Elizabeth returned his smile nervously, her eyes trailing over him and noting how he could wear shirt and trousers in such a casual manner.

"Hello, I'm William Darcy. You must be Elizabeth Bennet?" he asked, holding out his hand.

"I am." Elizabeth confirmed in reply and shook his hand lightly.

She couldn't help but notice how soft his hand was. She had never known a man's hand could be that soft. Her father's had always been covered in flour and ingredients from his time at the bakery.

"Thank you, Alice, for showing her in." William said, acknowledging his housekeeper.

"Shall I bring you both a cup of tea?" Alice asked.

She met William's gaze, noting the softness in his voice as he asked her if she'd like a drink. Elizabeth nervously squeaked out a 'yes please' before following William Darcy to the sofa and took a seat.

"Today we'll be going over the contract and discussing any details in there. I thought it would be best to meet you in person and then you could meet Mia before we decide on an official start date. Nothing to worry about." William informed her.

"I thought as much. From what Alice told me, Mia seems like a delightful girl." Elizabeth said brightly.

She watched as he smiled fondly and nodded his agreement.

"She is. But I'm a bit biased." William admitted with a chuckle.

"You're her father, of course you are." Elizabeth replied.

"Do you have any questions?" Will asked.

So, Elizabeth asked him the questions she wanted to ask, and William answered each one, putting her mind and nerves at ease at the prospect of starting anew. While she had experienced excitement at being offered a job, it also had made her nervous and scared. It wasn't like she'd had a choice in having to start again, David had made that decision for the both of them. But in two weeks since she had left her life in London, she had already managed to find herself a job and that was an accomplishment. The more she chatted to William, the more she felt relaxed that this was going to be just what she needed. He seemed to like him more each second that passed as they talked. One thing she could tell, was that he was a devoted father from the way he spoke about his daughter.

As they finished talking about the details of the contract, William checked his watch.

"Would you like to come with me to collect Mia from school? She has a half day today due to staff training. That way, you can see where her school is and we can inform the staff who you are so they know that you'll be the one collecting her from your start date." William suggested.

Elizabeth took a mouthful of her tea that Alice had brought in for the two of them and swallowed.

"Yes, I think that would be nice." She replied.

They talked some more about the job role, about Mia a little bit more and what she liked and what she didn't like. And then it was time that William looked at his watch and the two of them left the house and began walking the short distance to the school that Mia attended. She listened to William tell her about the school, why he had chosen it for his daughter. She was surprised to learn that the school wasn't a private one. If one thing was clear, William Darcy could afford to send his child to a private school if he wanted to.

"Public schools are quite good, I rather liked the ones I attended." Elizabeth mused.

"Private education is an advantage, don't get me wrong," William said, "I went to private schools during my childhood but it was always important to my late wife that Mia attend a public school for her primary education. Natalie believed public schools funded by the government would give Mia more life changing experiences and more experience with the real world. She would mix with children not from the same background as her, Natalie thought it would make Mia more appreciative of the world and others."

"Does Mia remember her mother?" Elizabeth asked.

William smiled sadly and shook his head.

"No, she was rather young when Natalie died. But she asks questions about her mother and she has a lot of pictures that she likes to look at." He replied.

Elizabeth noted the look of sadness in William's eyes at the brief talk about his wife. It was clear from the look in his eyes that he had felt the loss of someone he loved deeply and she found herself feeling a little strange. Although she hadn't been widowed, she had still lost her husband because David was seeking a divorce. And while she felt devastated that her marriage had ended, she had silently decided the minute that she had to swallow her pride and ask her father to come home, that perhaps it was for the best. The David that she had been madly in love with five years ago wasn't the man she was divorcing. She had loved David once and over the last few weeks, since she had swallowed her pride and called her dad asking to move back home, that her love for her husband which had once been which had burned so brightly like a flame, was slowly fading away. Now she was determined to make her fresh start and figure out who she was as a person instead of being someone's wife and putting their needs ahead of her own for once. It was a loss, but a loss which allowed her to close that chapter of her life. Being widowed like William Darcy was, it wasn't as if he had a choice when it came to his loss. But neither did she.

"I'm sorry that you both had to lose someone you loved." Elizabeth said sadly.

"Thank you." William replied softly.

They carried on walking, crossing the road and turning corners until they eventually came to the school that Mia attended. Walking through the open gates to the main entrance, they pressed the buzzer before pulling open the front door and stepping inside. Elizabeth noted the look of the school reception, filled with bright coloured noticeboards which informed parents of upcoming school events and reminders of school policies. On one noticeboard there were pictures of staff members whilst another informed visitors of the school's ethics and values and how those were achieved. She was handed over paperwork which she quickly filled in as the receptionist went off to go and collect Mia from her classroom.

Minutes later and the paperwork filled out and signed, Elizabeth handed it back over to the receptionist as she saw the little girl staring at her curiously for the first time. Her heart pounded with nerves as she waited to be introduced.

"Mia, this is Elizabeth, she's going to be looking after you when I'm at work." William said warmly.

As Elizabeth bent down to Mia's level, she held out her hand and the little girl instantly shook it with a welcoming grin. Her heart rate slowed as she suddenly felt that this was definitely the fresh start that she needed.

ooOoo

Jane sat in the small little office space at the back of the bakery, her fingers tapping away fast as she typed up the following months staff rotas. Her eyes kept darting back to the filled in diary, taking into account who on the payroll had requested certain time off and then back to the computer screen to ensure she could honour everyone's requests. As she pressed the save button, Charlotte came rushing into the office, wearing a flour covered apron and looking stressed.

"Jane…I wouldn't normally ask…but can you cover out front? Massive queue build up…" Charlotte panted.

Pushing her chair away from the desk, Jane gave Charlotte a warm and reassuring smile and left the office. She pulled an apron off the coat rack and tied it around her waist before stepping out on to the front counter. Charlotte had been right, the queue had built up back to the front door of the bakery and all the tables were filled with customers eating their pastries and sandwiches on the dining area. She took a position behind the till and started to serve the customers, instructing her staff members to prepare the orders while she served and another staff member took orders on another till. Slowly, the queue began to reduce and the pace of the staff wasn't as manic as it had been when she had first stepped out onto the front counter. All of a sudden, she was greeted by a friendly smile, bright blue eyes and bright red hair.

"I'm sorry, I didn't quite catch what you said?" Jane said politely and apologetically.

"I was asking if you had a cloth I could wipe a table with?" the man repeated, still smiling and gesturing to an empty table.

"Oh…I'll be over in a minute…" Jane mumbled.

"Let me, you're busy on your feet." The man smiled.

"You really don't have to do that…"

But the man smiled widely at her, leaning over the till and picked up a cloth in his hand and walked over to the table he had gestured to. Jane moved from the till and out to the dining area, standing in front of the man as he wiped over the table and handed her the cloth back.

"I would have cleaned that for you." Jane said politely.

"It's no trouble, I can see you're rushed off your feet."

"Well…thanks…I guess…"

The man continued to smile at her. Jane stared back and felt herself returning his smile, feeling her heart skip a beat as the man held his hand out to her.

"I'm Charles." The man said softly.

She shook his hand.

"Jane." She replied.

But before they could have more of a conversation, the man's mobile phone began to ring. Charles sighed and pulled it out, making a grim face as he stared at the screen.

"I have to go, but it was nice meeting you, Jane." Charles smiled brightly.

She watched as if in a haze as this kind stranger left the bakery and turned left on the street outside. When she came out of the haze a moment later, she noticed the busy queue was now non-existent and went back to the office to finish her paperwork; wondering just how a stranger, a thoughtful stranger it seemed, could have that type of effect on her in a few brief moments their eyes had met


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N:** Thank you all for your well wishes, it is truly appreciated! Enjoy the next chapter, I hope to update again in the next few weeks.

 **Chapter Five**

For her first day on her new job, Elizabeth surprisingly didn't feel nervous as she knocked on the door to the Darcy's house. She rapped her closed fist gently on the front door, returning the welcoming smile that greeted her as it opened. Mia was already dressed in her school uniform, a grey pinafore over a white polo and a navy blue cardigan matched by navy knee high socks.

"Morning Elizabeth." Mia greeted happily.

"Good morning Mia. Are you ready for school?" Elizabeth asked, stepping inside the house and closing the door behind her.

"Almost. Can you plait my hair for me please?" Mia asked.

"Of course."

The two walked into the living room and 8sat on the sofa, with Mia passing Elizabeth the hair brush and facing away from her.

"Would you like a normal plait or I can French plait if you like?" Elizabeth asked.

"Just a normal please." Mia replied happily.

Elizabeth began to brush through the eight-year-old's hair, trying to brush so delicately through the curls in fear of brushing it too hard that it hurt. Mia sat completely still, as if she were a statue.

"You can brush a little harder, it won't hurt." Mia said reassuringly.

"Okay."

She brushed through the curly hair a little harder, holding the curls in her spare hand as she brushed the knots out of it. She admired the soft texture to Mia's hair, like something silky and delicate.

"You've got lovely hair." Elizabeth complimented softly.

"Thanks," Mia replied brightly, "I get it from my dad."

"You look a lot like him." Elizabeth agreed.

"Who do you look most like?" Mia asked.

"Well I take after my dad just like you. But my older sister looks like my mum and my younger sister got my mums eyes but my dad's wavy hair." Elizabeth replied.

"You have two sisters? You're lucky."

"I suppose I am."

"I don't have any brothers or sisters, what's it like?" Mia asked.

Elizabeth chuckled slightly as she finished plaiting the little girl's hair and tied it off at the end with a hairband.

"There is a bit of an age gap between the three of us. There is four years between me and Jane, my older sister and my younger sister Lydia is four years younger than me. So, we didn't always get along but now we're grown up, we look out for each other. And help each other." Elizabeth explained.

"Did you ever fight?" Mia asked curiously, turning around to face her.

Elizabeth nodded and laughed.

"All the time. We used to hide each other's things and borrow without asking. We called each other names and teased each other. But we always made up after each silly little fight." She replied.

"My dad has a sister, my auntie Georgie. She's ten years younger than my dad." Mia stated proudly.

"You have a lot of people that love you, I think you're lucky too." Elizabeth smiled.

Mia nodded in agreement and returned Elizabeth's smile. As Elizabeth checked her watch for the time, she instructed Mia to get her lunchbox and her bookbag before making a quick goodbye hug for Alice and headed out the front door. They walked up the road side-by-side, with the two discussing the days routine.

"What are we doing after school?" Mia asked.

"What would you like to do?"

Mia chewed on her lip for a moment before replying.

"Well I don't have ballet class until tomorrow...maybe we could go to the park by the community centre?"

Elizabeth smiled, "So that's what we'll do and then we have to get you home for homework and dinner." She said.

"I don't get homework on Mondays." Mia informed her.

"Okay...do you have chores to do?" Elizabeth asked.

Mia nodded and pulled a face which made Elizabeth laugh a little. It reminded her of a time when she used to hate doing her chores as a child.

"Not a fan eh?" Elizabeth chuckled.

"No. But my dad says I have to do them if I want my pocket money." Mia sighed.

"What chores do you have to do?" Elizabeth asked.

"Dad doesn't pay for me to make my bed, put my dirty clothes in the wash basket, tidy my room and put my plate and cups in the sink. Anything extra like putting the recycling in the green bin or helping Alice with the laundry when she pulls it out of the dryer he says I earn pocket money. He tells me I also earn it for good behaviour and doing my homework." Mia replied.

"It's a good thing that you help out round the house, it teaches you responsibility."

"I know. Dad says he wants me to learn these things, it's what my mum wanted too."

Elizabeth looked down both ways of the street before the two of them crossed the road to continue their journey to Mia's school.

"Is there anything that you wanted to learn as an after school hobby?"

Mia looked deep in thought for a few minutes as they continued walking up the road until she looked up at Elizabeth and smiled.

"Maybe we could have a look at the notices in the community centre?"

"That's what we'll do." Elizabeth agreed, smiling in return.

Finally, they reached the school and headed into the reception to sign Mia in. Once Elizabeth scrawled her signature into the book, she turned to Mia.

"I'll see you at three o'clock then. Have a good day Mia."

"Have a good day Elizabeth." Mia said.

Watching her charge walk down the colourful corridors of the school, Elizabeth left the school feeling like this couldn't have been a more successful start to her first day as a childminder to Mia Darcy.

ooOoo

"We need a night out."

Jane finished drying the plate and placed it in the cupboard before turning to face her youngest sister with an eyebrow raised.

"Lydi, you're a student. The whole point of being a student is letting your hair down and having fun. Besides, haven't you just gone out with Kit and Mary?" she questioned.

She ignored the roll of her sister's eyes and pulled herself up to sit on the kitchen side. Lydia copied her actions, pulling herself up on to the opposite counter on the other side of the kitchen.

"I do get out a lot, that's true. But I haven't had a night out with you and Lizzy since she was last visiting with David. It'll be good, the three of us out having a few drinks and letting our hair down." Lydia answered.

As if a night out was as easy as Lydia implied it was.

"Lydi, I would love to-"

"I've already asked Dad to babysit for a few hours. He said he'd love to." Lydia interrupted.

"And I appreciate it but-"

"Jane, you're twenty-nine, you're not exactly a pensioner who's getting a hip replaced. You need to take care of yourself now and again. Having a few drinks for a few hours with your sisters is hardly going out on an all-nighter and venturing to the nearest greasy spoon for a fry-up as a hangover cure the next morning." Lydia reminded.

Jane let out a heavy sigh and rubbed her temple with her fingers. She hadn't had a night out or a few hours to enjoy herself in a very long time. Between her responsibilities at the bakery and looking after the twins, alongside Lucy's additional needs, she hardly had any time to read or shop for herself.

"I'll think about it, okay?" Jane offered.

Lydia smiled and shook her head.

"No. This is happening. On Saturday. Dad will be here at seven to look after the twins."

"Lydia!"

"We all agree, you need a night off. You're not just a mum-"

"You can hardly say that! I am a mum. My children come first! Everything that I do is for Peter and Lucy. And sometimes that doesn't even feel like it's enough!" Jane exclaimed.

Lydia jumped a little at the unexpectedness of Jane's outburst and smiled sadly.

"You're a brilliant mum, Jane. You know that we all think that. There is nothing that you wouldn't do for your kids. And everything you do is more than enough." Her sister said reassuringly.

"Doesn't feel like it. I already feel guilty enough because their dad fucked off, I'm struggling to make sure that Lucy gets into a school that can meet her needs, I'm struggling to get the extra help she needs. And then there's the community paediatrician giving me a prescription for melatonin to help Lucy sleep better and the leaflets to a local charity which can offer her respite care occasionally. How do you think that makes me feel as a mother? That I have to drug my child because she doesn't sleep like a child her age should and looking into dumping her so I can have a break from my own child?!" Jane ranted, tears falling down her cheeks.

Lydia jumped off the kitchen counter and walked over to her, wiping away the tears.

"You aren't a failure because the community paediatrician decided to try Lucy on a treatment to try and help you all sleep better. It's not your fault that she's had her epilepsy medication upped to help reduce her seizures and it's not your fault that George walked out on them. Let's face it, he wasn't much of a father to them in the beginning anyway. As for the leaflet on respite care, the paediatrician suggested it as a way for you and Peter to live somewhat normal lives because caring for Lucy is a twenty-four hour, seven days a week job. And nobody could do it better than you."

"I just don't know if what I'm doing is enough, Lydia. I feel horrible for even looking at having someone else care for her." Jane whispered in fright, sniffing deeply.

"You are doing enough. More than enough. You do what you can and more for them. I think respite would be great for all of you. Go and meet with them if you're unsure, see for yourself what they offer and how they would look after Lucy and then you can make a decision. She'll be able to have experiences targeted at children who are at her ability level and you and Peter can have weekends away or day trips somewhere. As for the extra help you need, you have us to come with you and fight your corner if someone denies you the help that Lucy needs." Lydia reassured her.

Jane sniffed again and smiled gratefully at her sister. It was times like this when she needed someone to boost her confidence when she felt that she wasn't doing enough. And she knew that not everyone in her life could give her that, but the ones who could reminded her that she had to be strong for her children.

"So…a few drinks for a few hours on Saturday? I think it would really do you some good." Lydia said gently.

Jane nodded in agreement.

"Just a few hours." She muttered.

"Just a few hours." Lydia agreed.

Checking her watch, Jane jumped off the kitchen side.

"Time to get the twins from preschool, you coming?" she asked.

Lydia smiled.

"I wouldn't miss an afternoon with my niece and nephew." Her sister replied.

Grabbing their belongings, Jane locked up the house and they left to collect the twins from preschool, talking more about their upcoming first night out as sisters in a long time.

ooOoo

Between the hours of nine in the morning and three in the afternoon, Elizabeth had surely kept herself busy. The first thing she had done after dropping Mia to school was return to the Darcy residence where Alice made her a cup of tea and reassured her that she would do a grand job looking after Mia. Once the tea was finished, she familiarised herself with the medication Mia took for epilepsy and made her way into the town to put a prescription request in at the Darcy's doctor's surgery. After that she walked to the pharmacy that Alice had told her to go to and collected Mia's ready prescription and placed it in her bag. By the time her medication errands were completed it was already nearing lunchtime. She returned once more to the house where Alice made her some lunch despite having bought herself a pasta pot from Tesco Express on her way to work that morning.

In the afternoon she made up a weekly calendar on both her phone and one she could keep in her bag just so she could keep track of what she and Mia would do together outside of school hours and her tasks whilst Mia was in school. An hour before she was due to collect Mia from school she took a quick walk to get to know the local area surrounding where Mia lived so she knew what they could access locally until she could save up and afford a car to take Mia to the other side of town to do activities. She found that there was a local library on a ten minute walk from the Darcy residence to which she made the mental note of taking Mia along there sometime. The library offered not only reading hour for children twice a week but did school holiday activities for free such as Lego building workshops, arts and crafts workshops and poetry and creative writing clubs for children of certain ages. Elizabeth felt herself looking forward to spending more time with Mia with the summer holidays only a matter of weeks away.

At three o'clock Elizabeth waited outside the reception area and watched as class-by-class, teachers were seeing the children out safely to their parents. Eventually, Mia came running over to her and surprised Elizabeth by giving her a tight hug. It only made Elizabeth ever the more determined to make this opportunity work.

"How was your day?" Elizabeth asked brightly.

The two began to walk in the direction of the community centre.

"It was good. We're doing The Tudors as our history topic at the moment. Is it a bad thing that Henry VIII had six wives?" Mia asked curiously.

Elizabeth laughed.

"I suppose it depends on what you personally think on the topic." She replied with a smile.

"I don't get it. He really wanted a boy and he got one. Why did he need to marry so many times? My Uncle Charlie has a sister who says marriage and divorce is for failures. So…was Henry VIII a failure?"

Ah. Uncle Charlie's sister sounded really delightful!

Elizabeth paused for a few moments, thinking about her own situation. For five years she had been married. Giving up her own wants, dreams and desires to support David through his dreams and desires. She had loved him once. And now she was on the verge of being divorced. The more time she spent apart from her estranged husband she was gaining some clarity. Over five years, David had changed from the person she had fallen in love with to someone she now no longer recognised. She missed the person who he had been. Or maybe he was just hiding who he really was all along? Those were questions she supposed would be answered when she had fully moved on from her husband.

"Elizabeth?"

Coming out of her line of thought, she blinked.

"Sorry Mia. Just because people get married and sometimes get divorced doesn't mean that they're a failure. As to Henry VIII, we can only guess. Neither of us were there when it happened and we can only assume. I think he wanted to be love and be loved. And as for wanting a boy, yes he had one. But back in those times children were lucky to live a long time." Elizabeth explained.

"I guess. My teacher said people back in olden times had lots of children to pass on kingdoms because they died young." Mia said.

Without saying anymore on the subject, they reached the park and the community centre.

ooOoo

Later that evening when their trip to the park and community centre had finished, Elizabeth and Mia returned to the house where Mia ate her dinner and Elizabeth went through Mia's bookbag to look through the paperwork the school had sent home. There was a letter about an upcoming school trip for Mia's class to a local Tudor museum which detailed the cost of the trip and the requirements of the trip and a letter notifying parents about headlice and a change to the hot school meals menu for Friday. Elizabeth pinned the letters on the fridge for William to see when he got in from work that evening. Once Mia had finished her dinner, Elizabeth helped her tidy her bedroom, read a book to Mia before running a bath for her. Alice had informed her that Mia preferred privacy when taking a bath but needed someone to sit in the doorway just in case of a seizure. Whilst William had installed an alarm and cord for Mia to pull if she felt unwell in the bath, the poor girl still needed someone who could get to her quickly should she have a seizure whilst bathing.

After the bath, Mia dried and dressed herself ready for bed. It was as Elizabeth was putting Mia to bed for the night that William had returned home.

"Hello you two, how was your day?" William asked.

"It was good dad! Elizabeth took me to the park and the community centre. We picked up some leaflets about some classes I might try out!" Mia replied excitedly.

"What classes?"

"Well…maybe tap or modern dance and continue ballet. I quite like the sound of karate…and maybe trampolining or gymnastics."

"It sounds like you'll both be kept busy." William mused.

Mia nodded and yawned loudly. Elizabeth watched as William kissed his daughter tenderly on the forehead before the two of them got up from where they sat on Mia's bed.

"Goodnight dad, I love you millions." Mia said sleepily.

"And I love you a million times more." Will whispered.

With that, the two adults left the bedroom and closed the door quietly behind them and walked downstairs together.

"How was your first day?" William asked.

"I really enjoyed it. Mia is a delight." Elizabeth replied honestly.

"Good. I'm glad you've both got off to a good start."

"Thank you again, this is just the opportunity that I needed."

William smiled at her genuinely.

"All I ask is that you care for my daughter like you would your own child. Mia is my world." He said softly.

"I will take the very best care of her," Elizabeth said reassuringly, "If one thing is apparent from my short time with Mia, you both have an unbreakable bond."

William nodded his thanks as Elizabeth collected her belongings.

"I'll see you tomorrow, Elizabeth. Do you need me to call you a taxi?" he offered.

"My dad is picking me up, he should be here soon." Elizabeth replied.

"Stay safe and have a good evening."

Returning the sentiments, Elizabeth said her goodbyes to William and Alice and left the Darcy residence, already looking forward to her next day of work.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N:** Thank you for your reviews on the last chapter, your words give me encouragement when you point out particular parts of a chapter that you may like (or dislike). I hope to update again before the month is out but it's the summer holidays (And keeping two school-age kids and a toddler amused on top of a fourth-month-old is hard) so my apologies in advance if chapter seven comes in early September.

Enjoy!

 **Chapter Six**

At thirty-two years of age, Charles Bingley was starting to feel that his life was finally falling into place. He had just bought himself a big house with three bedrooms, a large garden, two reception rooms, separate utility, two bathrooms and a two-car driveway in the little town of Meryton, where it just so happened his best friend and his goddaughter resided. Granted, he wasn't as well off as William Darcy was nor would he ever be, but after receiving his share of his mother's life insurance policy pay-out five years ago, he decided to use the money in property. During the week he worked as a financial advisor for a bank and on the weekends he would go to auctions to look at potential properties that were up for auction. These houses were usually way below average market value due to age or damage but he knew potential when he saw it. When he would successfully bid on a property, he would buy it, fix it up, add value to the property and then sell it on for a profit. Renovating properties had become a hobby and a passion for Charles, but now he wanted to settle down in a place of his own. He was at an age where he finally wanted to meet someone, fall in love and start a family.

Of course, Charles had his share of relationships, the longest one had lasted just a little over three years. But now it was different. He wanted permanence. If there was one thing that he truly craved in life, it was wanting a bond with someone like he witnessed his best friend have with Mia. Charles had been best friends with William Darcy since they were boys, having met at preschool at the age of three. They had attended the same school, even attended the same university, he had been the best man at William and Natalie's wedding. He had been chosen to be the godfather to their little girl and he doted on Mia as if she were his own daughter. When Natalie had died, he had been there to support his best friend and goddaughter. But it also reminded him that he didn't have what William had. And whilst he didn't envy his best friend for having an unbreakable bond with his child, Charles couldn't lie that he wanted the same.

A week ago he experienced what he could only describe as an electrical exchange. An attraction. A little connection if you will. He had been walking through the local high street trying to get to know the new community that he would be living in permanently when he had stopped by a bakery to get something to eat. It had been quite crowded but the girl who had served him had been quite friendly when he had placed his order and when he had spotted an empty table he could sit at, he had taken the chance, only to find that the previous occupant had left it rather sticky. He had made the decision to go back to the counter to ask the girl who had served him for a cloth, only to find someone else in her place. A woman with the blondest hair he had ever seen and the brightest blue eyes which reminded him of sapphires. Jane. He had gone back to the bakery in hopes of seeing her again only to find that she didn't work in the bakery on a regular basis.

Other than hoping to have another chance encounter with the beautiful blonde he had only met briefly, living in the same town as his best friend was another positive note. In the week that he had been permanently living in Meryton he had yet to stop by the Darcy's to spend time with Will and Mia. Charles had called Will to make arrangements to meet up for a few pints and his best friend had made the suggestion that he come over on Saturday to see Mia for a little while before they headed out together.

It was a balmy June evening when Charles knocked eagerly on the front door. He was greeted with the big toothy grin that he hadn't seen for a while. A mass of curly brown hair and excitable eyes, he knelt down as his goddaughter flung her arms around his neck.

"Uncle Charlie!" Mia greeted happily.

"I've missed you Mia." Charles laughed, ruffling a hand through her hair.

Letting go of the little girl, he kicked the door to a close behind him and shook his best friends hand and greeted Will with a smile. William led him and Mia through to the living room and they sat down, catching up on Mia's achievements at school and her new relationship forming with the new childminder that William had hired. Then they moved on to catching up on William's life, which was pretty much the same as usual. After colouring a picture with Mia, he waited patiently for William to put his daughter to bed and then came downstairs to have a quick drink before they headed out for the evening.

"She's still a good kid," Charles mused happily, "I'm debating in my mind if she'll have a rebellious streak."

William laughed and handed him a glass of cider which Alice had brought in moments ago.

"I'm sure she will. She has to take after Natalie in something." His best friend stated.

"Didn't Natalie dance when she was Mia's age?"

William nodded.

"That's why I encourage Mia to do ballet. My girl is talented, much like her mother was."

"At least she inherited the dancing talent from her mother. Did you ever get to the bottom of Natalie's rebellious streak?" Charles asked curiously.

William shrugged but smiled.

"She was an only child and her parents worked full-time. They sent her off to boarding school. It was most likely a typical teenager wanting some attention from her parents."

"True. I suppose it's a comfort that Mia is your entire focus so you may not need to worry about a rebellious streak when she hits her teens."

"I sometimes wonder if she needs a mother figure." William admitted.

This surprised Charles. In the last six years, his best friend had not once mentioned the thought of dating or looking to have a relationship. Maybe Darcy was now starting to feel it was the right time to pursue something.

"Will, you shouldn't think about it like that. You should think about if it's something that you both want." Charles advised.

The two took a mouthful of their ciders and placed the glasses on the coffee table.

"Mia wants me to be happy. When we were holding interviews for a childminder she expressed that she wanted the childminder to make the both of us happy." Will replied.

"Your kid is the best. I wouldn't mind a child of my own like Mia." Charles said affectionately.

Will raised an eyebrow.

"Do you have someone in mind?" his best friend asked.

Charles felt the temperature rise in his face so much that he tugged at his collar and looked briefly away before seeing the smirk on his best friend's face.

"Not really…but there's this woman I met at this lovely little bakery in town…I only met her once but it seemed like there was…I don't know…a connection or something…that makes me sound mad." Charles stammered.

Will shook his head with an amused chuckle.

"You don't sound mad mate. Well…I suppose a little…so what's her name?"

"Jane. She was the most beautiful woman I've ever seen-"

"Don't let your sister hear you say that. You might have to start hiding apples in fear of them being poisoned." Will joked.

Charles rolled his eyes. The subject of Caroline was one they preferred not to talk much about.

"My sister isn't that bad Darcy-"

"I disagree."

"She's still my sister, despite her…um…"

"Shortcomings?" Will suggested amusingly.

Charles rolled his eyes.

"Anyway…she doesn't work at the bakery often from what I'm told. Which means she's either an agency worker or she has one of those zero hours contacts and only does cover shifts. So the chances of me seeing her again at the bakery are slim." He said glumly.

"Maybe you could leave her a note with your number, expressing that you'd be interested in taking her out sometime?"

Charles shook his head.

"I'd look like some kind of stalker! I only met the woman once!" he protested.

"But if she left such an impression on you, isn't it worth taking a risk?" Will questioned.

Knowing his best friend had a point, but didn't want to debate the pros and cons of asking out a stranger, he stood from his seat.

"Come on, we need to get to the bar if we're having this night out." Charles encouraged.

With nothing more to say on the subject, Alice shooed them out of the house whilst stating that she would take care of Mia and the two best friends left the house; ready for their night out.

ooOoo

The air was filled with a gentle breeze with the sky turning a mid-blue as the three sisters scrambled out of the taxi. The car pulled away and the three sisters entered the bar. Inside it wasn't overly crowded yet not a bad start to a Saturday night.

"Jane, put the phone away, Dad isn't going to call or text every two seconds." Lydia said quietly.

Elizabeth watched as her older sister rolled her eyes but Jane put the phone back into her bag, despite still looking a little on edge. She knew that her older sister was struggling with her guilt at having a few hours to herself. But it was just what the three of them needed. Lydia was merely weeks away from officially graduating from university and was in the middle of moving out of student housing, juggling shifts at the restaurant and applying for graduate jobs, Jane had a stressful life with the twins and her responsibilities with the bakery. And she needed to celebrate her start as a childminder and put all thoughts of her pending divorce out of her mind temporarily.

"There's a table over in the corner Lizzy." Lydia observed, pointing behind Elizabeth.

As she turned to make her way over in the direction that Lydia had pointed to, she collided with a tall man.

"Ow." Elizabeth groaned, massaging her forehead.

"I'm sorry, are you okay?" the man asked.

She knew that voice. Not well, but she recognised it. Looking up she smiled weakly at her employer.

"I'm fine, sorry, I wasn't looking where I was going." Elizabeth apologised.

"No, it's my fault. Being tall I sometimes forget to look down." William joked.

She laughed a little, without really finding it funny but felt at ease.

"Night out?" Elizabeth asked.

"Celebrating having my best friend move to town," William said brightly, gesturing to the redheaded man on his left, "Charles this is Elizabeth, my childminder."

Elizabeth shook hands with the other man and introduced her two sisters. She smirked when she noticed Jane blush a tinted red as Charles declared that he and Jane had already met. It was something she hadn't seen her sister do in a very long time, she had suddenly gone quite shy.

"Come on, let's grab that table before someone else takes it," Lydia interrupted, "William, Charles, would you like to join us?"

"Call me Will, and we'd love to." William replied softly.

The five walked through the bar and got to the table with Elizabeth offering to get the first round and Will offering to help her bring the drinks over.

"Your friend seems nice." Elizabeth commented, looking over to the table where Jane, Lydia and Charles were talking.

"He's been my best friend since the age of three. There isn't another man on this earth who I would trust more than Charles Bingley." Will stated fondly.

"How long has he been living in Meryton?" she asked.

"Charles moved here last week, he wants to put down some roots." Will replied.

"I assume he also goes by 'Uncle Charlie' too?"

Will chuckled but nodded his confirmation.

"Yes, he's Mia' s godfather. She's always called him that. I take it she mentioned him?"

"A few times, she's lucky to have so many people who care for her."

"She is," Will agreed brightly, "I hope that you'll be included in that category."

Elizabeth smiled warmly, feeling touched that he would want her to be close to his daughter and care for her just like others did. Turning her attention to the bartender, she and Will placed the group's order and then carried the drinks back to their table. They each chatted a little about themselves but Jane was mostly quiet and deflected when asked about herself. Elizabeth couldn't help but smirk whenever she looked in Jane or Charles' direction and noticed that they always seemed to be looking at one another.

"So…Charles…you've already met my sister?" Elizabeth asked.

Charles took a mouthful of his pint and nodded.

"Yes, I met her whilst she was working at this lovely little bakery but I've found she doesn't work there often." He replied, blushing slightly.

"Oh I agree, it is a lovely little bakery." Elizabeth said quietly, returning her attention to her finished glass of wine.

Just as Will starting asking questions about the bakery, Lydia rushed off after excitedly shouting a friend's name. Elizabeth turned and saw her younger sister hugging their childhood friend and neighbour, Martin Denny, before rushing off into the now busy crowd and disappeared out of sight. Standing up, Elizabeth headed to the bar to order herself another drink, only to be joined by Will once more.

"I thought I'd give Charles and your sister some privacy. I think he wants to have a conversation with her since all he's been talking about was hoping to meet her again." Will said quietly.

She didn't fail to notice the smirk on his face.

"I think Jane wanted the same. I haven't seen her this shy in a long time!" Elizabeth laughed.

The pair looked over to the table where Jane and Charles were now sat together and conversing quite comfortably together. Elizabeth noted how at ease her sister seemed to be, her shyness from earlier had vanished. She had to give her sister some credit. She knew that Jane had been anxious about having a few hours to herself and not worrying about the twins and she guessed it had been hard for her sister not to look at the phone constantly to see if their dad needed Jane at home in case Lucy had a seizure and required hospital treatment. But watching Jane have a conversation with someone she had just met and look like she was enjoying herself, it was an amazing achievement when Jane had been a single parent for the last two years and faced daily challenges.

"Shall we sit here for a little while? Give them a little longer?" Will suggested quietly.

Elizabeth nodded and the two pulled out the two empty bar stools they stood in front of and sat down. The bar was beginning to fill up and the DJ had started playing some music on the other side of the bar. She looked through the crowd, catching a glimpse of Lydia dancing with Denny and a group of his friends.

"Your younger sister's boyfriend?" Will inquired.

"A childhood friend. She hasn't seen him for a while but she used to talk about him non-stop before he moved away for university." Elizabeth replied with a smile.

"I remember being that age." He mused.

"I do too." Elizabeth sighed sadly.

She watched as Denny and Lydia danced to the music, their eyes glued to each other's filled with that warm flirty look that Elizabeth hadn't felt in five years. Seeing her sister like that made her remember herself being younger and falling in love with David. So much for temporarily putting her pending divorce out of her mind.

Unfortunately, her sad expression and being momentarily lost in thought didn't go unnoticed by her boss.

"Elizabeth? Are you okay?" Will asked, his voice full of concern.

"Yeah…just remembering…I'm fine…" Elizabeth replied.

"Are you sure? You seem upset." Will noted.

"I'll be fine." Elizabeth said encouragingly.

Will placed their order with the bartender, gesturing to Elizabeth to put her money away as he handed over a handful of coins to the bartender. In a few moments of silence and more observing of Lydia dancing with Denny, he smiled sadly.

"You told Alice that you were starting over and wanted something that gave you purpose. I assume you're fresh start is because of a relationship breakdown?" he asked quietly.

Elizabeth, surprised at his quick understanding of her line of thought, didn't see the need to lie. She thanked the bartender for handing her a drink and nodded stiffly.

"I'm sorry. Was it a long relationship?"

"A marriage of five years. We met when I was in my second year of university and married quickly. Now I'm a twenty-five-year-old woman living back with her parents with nothing to my name and nothing of the last five years to show of my life."

"Oh…I'm sorry…" Will mumbled.

"Thank you. I'll be fine. I'm ready to start anew and I can't thank you enough for giving me the job of looking after Mia. My first week has been…amazing…I can't ever remember having a better week…" Elizabeth gushed.

Will smiled at squeezed her hand gently and supportively.

"Elizabeth, I'm really pleased you feel that way. But I hope you don't just come to think of me as your employer. In time, I hope you come to think of us as…friends…I know it's only been a week but my daughter has already started to bond with you and that means the world to me…"

"I'm sure we both will…in time…"

With that, they ended talk on relationship breakdowns and employer and employee dynamic and talked more about their families.

ooOoo

"So, tell me something about yourself." Charles requested.

He watched as the beautiful blonde sat next to him blush slightly. He got the impression that, by the way she averted her eyes from his to look around the bar and the way she slowly picked up her drink and anxiously bit at her straw as she took a sip, she didn't usually get asked about herself very often. Charles waited patiently, giving her an assuring smile as she placed her drink back on the table in front of them and turned her attention back to him.

"What would you like to know?" Jane asked quietly.

"I don't know…what do you do in your spare time?"

A sad smile. At least, it resembled a sad smile as one formed on her delicate face.

"I don't really get much spare time. Tonight is but a rare occasion."

"Does working at a bakery take up all your time?" Charles asked curiously.

"No…I actually co-own the bakery, I do all the paperwork side." Jane replied.

"Wow…so you own your own business…how long?"

"My father owned it before I did. But when I was twenty-two he signed half of it over to me and my business partner bought thirty percent from my father whilst he kept the other twenty percent for his own income. So…I've owned it for seven years and it's flexible for me…"

"It's a lovely bakery, I'm particularly fond of the pasties." Charles complimented.

"Baked fresh daily, Charlotte loves working in the kitchen." Jane said fondly.

"Do you work in there often?"

Jane shook her head.

"No, I work from home mostly. I touch base with Charlotte in person once a week but mostly I email in, call or text about matters I've dealt with. I sort out payroll, tax returns, VAT, ordering, work schedules. It's quite boring when you think about it." she said nervously.

"No it isn't," Charles assured her, "It's impressive and as a customer, I thoroughly enjoy the products that you produce there. Owning a business is an achievement and I'm sure that you're amazing at running the bakery, no matter whether it's the baking side or the paperwork side of running a business."

Jane smiled at him gratefully, she seemed touched by his words. It was his own desire to make renovating properties a business venture one day, to be his own boss rather than continue his work as a financial advisor.

"So what is it that you do?" she asked curiously.

"I work full-time as a financial advisor but on the side I buy properties at auction, renovate and sell them on for a profit." Charles replied.

"Wow. How long have you been renovating properties?"

"Only in the last few years, it takes a big commitment and I do most of the work myself and occasionally I ask my father to pitch in with some building work, he used to be a handyman and worked part-time on building sites when he was getting a teaching degree."

"So what work can you do yourself?" Jane asked, her eyes full of intrigue as she shifted her arm on to the table and rested her head on her closed fist, giving him her full attention.

"My dad taught me to plaster, how to fit a bathroom and kitchen, to fit in walls and extend properties if needed. But other things like plumbing, heating, electrics. I haven't ever tried a loft conversion before but I have an old childhood friend whose business specialises in loft conversions so he did the job for me once." Charles replied, smiling at her.

"How many properties have you renovated?"

"I've only done three in the last five years, I'm currently on my fourth but it's in the early days of the project. One day, I hope to make it a business venture, property renovation is a hobby I've found I quite enjoy and would love to pursue it as a passion and a job. But you still haven't answered my question."

Jane raised an eyebrow.

"I believe I already answered it with I don't really have much spare time." She smiled.

"Not even for a coffee or dinner?" Charles asked boldly, his heart beating faster in his chest.

He had hoped that he wasn't making assumptions. But for the past hour he had been sat at this little table in the corner with her, just the two of them alone. Her youngest sister had left them after seeing a friend in the crowd and had gone off with him and the other was chatting with Will at the bar where they had been sat for the majority of the hour. The connection he had felt the first time remained, in fact he was sure that after speaking some more to her, the connection had strengthened a little. Whatever it was, his gut was telling him that he wanted to see her again.

But the smile on her face faded and she looked away. He frowned in confusion.

"I'm sorry…I thought we were…" Charles stuttered, trying to apologise quickly.

"No…it's not you…" Jane sighed, turning back to face him with a look of regret etched on her face, "You seem lovely and I would like more than anything to get to know you better…but I can't commit to anything when my life is just too hectic and probably will always be."

Charles felt even more confused.

"Surely running a business isn't a twenty-four hour job? Surely you must get time for yourself?" he asked quietly.

Jane sighed heavily, it was evident that she was disappointed.

"It's not the business that keeps me from having time to be myself. I have two very good reasons why I can't date." She muttered.

"Which are?"

Jane pulled out her phone and showed him her lock screen. As he stared down at the image, he noted just how the children in the picture were her very image.

"I'm a single mother to twins and my life isn't a typical single parent life. It is so much more complicated. So much more stressful." She explained softly.

He noted the pitch of pride in her voice. The tone of love as she spoke.

But he also noted the tone of sadness.

"Oh…they're beautiful kids…they look just like you…how old are they?" Charles asked.

"They're four," Jane replied with a smile, "And I really should get back to them. I said I'd only be away for a few hours so I need to get back."

He watched as she gathered her belongings and rose from the table but before she left, he took hold of her hand; trying to ignore the soft and silky skin as he held it gently.

"Will you at least think about meeting me again?" Charles asked, "I'm great with kids, ask Darcy."

Jane laughed slightly but didn't look away.

"I'll think about it." she promised.

Nodding and bidding her goodnight, Charles let go of her hand and watched as Jane Bennet waved goodbye to her sisters and disappeared into the night.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N:** So here's chapter seven. Just a quick disclaimer: I know I usually research the hell out of details when it comes to my stories but given this is fiction, I'm going down the fictional route of divorce in this story. Usually in the UK, where my story is set, there are only a few guidelines when it comes to divorce. Also going off my parent's divorce (which ended after 18 years of marriage) theirs was finalised within 8 months. So, I'm not an expert when it comes to how to divorce a spouse, I'm not even married to my long-term partner. So, please bear this in mind when it comes to this chapter.

 **Chapter Seven**

"Elizabeth would you like to stay for dinner? I've made a stir fry." Alice asked warmly. b

It was nearly six-thirty on a Thursday night at the end of June, having been in her job for nearly a month. Her day had consisted of picking up the list requirements for Mia's upcoming school trip to Hampton Court Palace next week and observing Mia at her afterschool trampolining club that she had taken up last week.

"Yeah! Stay for dinner Lizzy," Mia pleaded excitedly, "I love stir fry!"

Will chuckled as he ruffled his daughter's hair.

"You are welcome to eat with us. Alice's stir fry is a family favourite." He said.

Elizabeth nodded her agreement, pulling out her phone to send her dad a text to tell him she'd be home a bit later than usual. The past week Will had left work earlier to be home long before it was time to tuck Mia into bed. Whilst it had meant a few earlier finishes, she had also gotten to see a lot more of the bond between Will and Mia and she found herself touched, as if her heart glowed whenever she witnessed the closeness that father and daughter shared. She felt so lucky that over the past month she had been accepted into their little unit.

"I'd love to stay, thank you." She replied softly.

Following the three into the dining room, she sat at the table and watched as Alice served up equal portions for the adults and a slightly smaller portion of stir fry for Mia. Will started off the conversation asking what everyone had been up to that day, making sure he took notice of every word said as the four ate their dinner. Elizabeth took the opportunity to ask Will shout his day in return, taking an interest in his work as a lawyer; even though he couldn't go into detail about his caseloads or clients due to confidentiality. Listening to the way he spoke about his work, Elizabeth could tell he loved his career.

"This stir fry is delicious, Alice." Elizabeth complimented.

"Thanks dear," Alice beamed, "It's an old family recipe."

"Alice used to cook it when Daddy was my age." Mia informed her, taking a bite off her fork.

"I did," Alice confirmed, "It was one of the meals I used to love to cook for my own husband and children."

"Are they big fans as much as Will and Mia?" Elizabeth asked.

"They were," Alice replied, "My children, James and Maggie, still ask for me to cook it whenever I spend time with them and their families. Sadly my husband Arthur died ten years ago."

"Oh…I'm sorry…"

"No apologies my dear, he lived a full and wonderful life." Alice said fondly.

With that, Will decided to move the topic of Alice's deceased husband to telling Elizabeth fond memories of Alice and her family at his family home, how he had grown up with Alice's children and had come to think of them as cousins. As they continued to eat their dinner, Elizabeth couldn't stop herself from smiling at just how lucky she was to be working and getting to know a generous and thoughtful man like William Darcy.

ooOoo

Dinner had been eaten with chocolate ice-cream served for dessert. Will had kindly offered to give her a lift home after he had done Mia's bedtime routine. While Elizabeth waited in the living room, Alice brought her a freshly made cup of tea and the two women were watching Coronation Street just as they heard footsteps coming down the stairs.

"I'm just going to unload the dishwasher." Alice announced cheerfully, getting up from her seat and exiting the room.

Will entered the living room and sat next to Elizabeth on the sofa where Alice had sat only moments ago.

"Mia's fast asleep, let me know when you're ready to go home." Will said.

"Are you sure it's not too much trouble?" Elizabeth asked.

"I'd rather you got home safely and I wouldn't have offered if it was too much trouble." Will replied.

"Thanks."

They sat watching the rest of Coronation Street when she heard him ask her something she hadn't expected him to ask.

"So…what's the situation with your sister…if you don't mind me asking?"

Her eyes diverted from the television to Will, an eyebrow raised.

"Which sister? And are you asking for yourself?" she questioned.

"No! not for me-"

"My sisters are amazing, you'd be very lucky." Elizabeth teased.

But Will had yet to catch her amused tone.

"I'm sure I would…but after that weekend where we bumped into you at the bar…and Charles was a bit…deflated I guess when your sister Jane turned him down…"

Ah. Charlie. The man that Jane had connected with and had turned him down on account of her life with the twins. Elizabeth understood her sister's decision. Contemplating going on a date with someone when she was a single mother was complicated. Add on the fact that one of her children had special needs would make dating rather more complicated. She also understood why Jane hadn't gone into detail about Lucy when she had told Charles about the twins. After everything that had happened with George, she could understand why her sister was hesitant about letting another man into her life.

"It's not really my place but I know she likes your friend. She hasn't shut up about him for starters and she feels guilty for what happened." Elizabeth said softly.

"I suppose I can understand…being a single parent and being asked out…it can be a little scary…" Will said quietly.

"All my sister thinks about and does is look after her twins. My niece and nephew are the luckiest kids alive having a mum like her." Elizabeth replied.

"I can relate. After my wife died and I became a single parent, I poured all of my focus into Mia. She got me through my grief."

"Did you ever date anyone after your wife's death?"

It was clear her question had taken him by surprise by the stunned expression on his face. Will cleared his throat with a sharp cough and shrugged his shoulders.

"I went on a few dates and there was one woman that I was 'seeing' for about three months but it never developed into something serious. I hope there will be one day where I can meet another woman who can love my child as much as they'd love their own child." He explained.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't-"

"No, it's fine," Will smiled reassuringly, "How about you?"

"What do you mean?"

"Would you want to start seeing someone?"

"My divorce is still pending, I haven't even signed papers yet." Elizabeth reminded him.

"So maybe not now or in the near future. But how about…I don't know…a year from now?" Will asked curiously.

"I'm not really looking for that. When David told me that he wanted a divorce, I decided to move back home for a fresh start. That was five weeks ago and I'm starting to feel a little more positive about myself. I guess what I'm trying to say is…I want to focus on me for a change. I've got an amazing job which I absolutely enjoy and look forward to everyday, I'm slowly saving up for a deposit on my own place. Eventually I'll buy my own car but first I need to move out of my parent's house!" she said, adding a laugh at her last sentence.

"I think it's great that you're putting yourself first. I take it that your marriage was an unhappy one?" he asked.

"Not at first. It was quite a happy one. I loved David…at least I think I did. I was twenty, he was the first man that I ever thought about a future with. But like I said, we were married young and fast. When I finished university, our whole marriage was about David's career. David's future. David's opportunities. He expected me to run the house daily and do all the chores. I was only allowed a part-time job so that it didn't interfere with David's vision of our life. Towards the end of our marriage…there were a lot of…" Elizabeth paused

"Arguments?" Will offered.

"A lot. And pressures and tears. There was one subject that we couldn't work through together but I've come to realise recently that my marriage was purely about David and what I wanted or what I desired didn't matter." Elizabeth sighed.

"I know this may sound horrible, but at least you got out of there. It sounds like your ex-husband is a selfish man." Will said softly.

"He is." Elizabeth agreed quietly, looking away from him.

That was something she had come to reflect on rather quickly. While she had known for a long time that her marriage was rocky, she had been willing to give counselling a try over the difficulties she and David faced. It pained her to learn that she would never be able to conceive and carry her own biological child and it was something that she was pushing to the back of her mind. Or at least trying to.

Will cleared his throat and switched over the TV channel once Coronation Street finished and Elizabeth finished her cup of tea.

"If you need any help with your divorce proceedings or help with the settlement of assets, I have some friends who specialise in family law. I can pull some strings if you want to put a firm close on that chapter of your life." He offered quietly.

Elizabeth turned her head to look at him, frowning slightly at the surprising offer to help her through her divorce. It surprised her that he would be willing to do something like that for her.

"I don't know what to say…" she said breathlessly.

"Well…we're friends aren't we?" Will asked.

"You're also my employer." Elizabeth reminded.

"True. But you're off the clock now. We've been talking for the last half an hour as friends." He pointed out.

"I just don't want a developing friendship with you to get complicated because of our working relationship."

"So we set some boundaries," Will smiled with reassurance, "During the hours you care for Mia, we maintain a professional standard."

"Do you think we can?" Elizabeth asked.

"I do."

Sharing a warm expression the two got up from their seats and left the house so Will could drop Elizabeth back home.

ooOoo

Charles stood in his new living room, proud of how much work he had accomplished in his week off work. He had taken a week off to be able to start decorating his new home. He had only been off for a few days and he had already decorated one of his spare bedrooms, his bedroom, the kitchen and today he had finished off the living room. He still had a lot of work to do, with the plans to start decorating the bathroom tomorrow.

He'd also finally gotten around to setting up his internet and television service provider which meant he could now fully enjoy his new home after going backwards and forwards between his old rented flat in London and his new house in Meryton on his weekends. He was now officially living in his new house and he planned to enjoy it to the fullest.

Another reason he was planning to keep so busy with decorating was to keep his mind off Jane Bennet. He hadn't seen her since the night he and Will ran into her and her sisters at the bar a few weeks ago and after she seemed to regretfully turn down him asking her out, he had decided to give her some space. She was a single mother to twins. Perhaps the hardest job of all raising two children by herself and it seemed like she genuinely regretted turning him down. But he understood. Her children had to be her priority and he had left the ball in her court as to whether or not she would change her mind.

But he still felt his heart race in his chest whenever his thoughts drifted to her. He knew that he liked her. That there had been something between them. He really liked her but he didn't want to pressure her or stalk her like some persistent predator.

Just as he sat down on his sofa he heard his front door knock. Rolling his eyes, he walked out into the downstairs hallway and opened his front door, being winded as a large leopard print suitcase was thrust into his chest. Charles pushed the door to a close and rested his blue eyes on the woman who had barged uninvited into his home.

"Caroline, what are you doing here?" Charles groaned in frustration.

His little sister flicked her loose red hair over her left shoulder.

"Can't a little sister come and spend some time with her favourite brother?" Caroline asked.

"Not when I didn't know you were coming!" Charles protested.

Caroline glared at him.

"Oh that's nice! You always know how to make someone feel special, Charles! I just wanted to spned some time with you for Christ's sake."

Rolling his eyes at his sister's tantrum, he placed her suitcase on the floor.

"You can stay for a few days! No longer!" Charles stated firmly.

Caroline gave him a sweet smile and hugged him tightly.

"You won't regret it, big brother." She whispered, her possessive eyes settling on the photograph on the side table of her brother, a baby girl with curly hair and William Darcy.


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N:** I can only apologise for the lack of updates! It's been nearly a month since chapter 7. All I can say is life is very busy when you have a 5 month old and three kids with ASD/ADHD/Chromosome disorders. But, on a positive note, all of kiddos are now back at school/pre-school and I have a bit more free time for a few weeks until Uni and meetings for my toddler start up (Who is due to start school next year! Where does the time go?! *emotional mumma*). Again, sorry for going off on a tangent, here is chapter 8 and I hope to update in about 2 weeks.

Enjoy my lovelies :)

 **Chapter Eight**

The start of July only brought more complications for Jane. It had been a rough few days with Lucy, who had broken the blackout blind in her bedroom which meant that Lucy was now only sleeping during the dark and short summer nights. From the crack of dawn her little girl would be wide awake and making noise and Jane would get up and sort Lucy out her breakfast and morning routine with her before getting Peter ready and drop the twins at preschool. One night she had decided to work on shift schedules for the bakery advancing well into the summer holidays throughout August and the start of September; with the thought of trying to reduce her paperwork for the bakery so she could spend a bit more time with the twins before they started 'big school'.

It was a Monday night and Lucy had finally given in to go to sleep. Tonight Jane felt lucky that she had a nurse working tonight to watch Lucy so she could get some sleep. She had given Peter his bath and helped him into his pyjamas and the two were sat in the living room reading a bedtime story. She had just finished the last sentence in The Gruffalo when Peter let out a little yawn.

"Are you sleepy my darling?" Jane whispered, kissing her boy's blonde head.

Peter nodded and snuggled tightly into her.

"I'll carry you to bed, hold on tight."

Peter wrapped his arms around Jane's neck and she stood up from the sofa, holding her son tightly to her as she crossed the living room and walked out into the hallway, walking up the stairs and stepping quietly across the landing to Peter's bedroom. She stepped across the few toy cars that still lay abandoned on the floor from playtime earlier and pulled back the covers when she reached Peter's bed. Carefully, she placed her son into his bed and tucked the covers around him, watching with a smile as he looked up at her through sleepy blue eyes.

"Mummy?" Peter yawned.

"Yes darling?" Jane asked.

"Those books you looked at, what are they?" her son questioned.

She hadn't realised that Peter had seen her reading through the leaflets that she had been given about the charity who could offer Lucy respite breaks.

"It's a place for children like Lucy who can go on little holidays and stay with people who look after them so everyone can have a break." Jane answered quietly.

"Is Lucy going to go there?"

Jane smiled sadly and shrugged.

"I don't know sweetie, mummy is thinking about it."

"Would she go forever?" Peter asked sleepily.

"No darling. Just for a week or two maybe every now and then. It just means Lucy would meet children like her and you and mummy can do some things together. But Lucy would always come back." Jane replied reassuringly.

Peter nodded with a smile.

"Don't worry mummy, one day I'll be big to look after you and Lucy."

Hearing those words from her little boy made her eyes start to well. She took a deep breath to stop herself from crying.

"You don't need to take care of us little man, that's my job." Jane said softly.

Peter shook his head and turned on to his side.

"I'm gonna take care of you mummy." He yawned.

With that, she watched her son close his eyes and mutter 'I love you' and drift off into a deep sleep. Tiptoeing out of the bedroom, she closed the bedroom door until there was a slight gap to let the light through and tiptoed across the landing into Lucy's bedroom. The nurse, Jenny, was knelt beside Lucy carefully taking her temperature.

"How's she doing?" Jane asked.

"Temperature is normal but we'll keep an eye on it every four hours," Jenny replied, "So far so good. If she can keep her temperature normal then we could possibly avoid a seizure."

The last few days had included Lucy suffering a lot of seizures which the hospital had stated was down to the hot weather which had spiked an increase in Lucy's body temperature. Luckily, Jane was able to get more help with a nurse coming out to care for Lucy during the night.

"Good. Do you need me to do anything?" Jane asked uneasily.

Jenny smiled, putting away her thermometer and pulled out Lucy's medical chart that the hospital had given to monitor Lucy's health at home.

"Jane, you ask this every time myself or a colleague is here to care for Lucy overnight. We're here to help you and give you a bit of a break. Take it. Go and have a cup of tea or turn in early and get a good night's sleep. Lucy will be fine." Jenny said reassuringly.

"But what if-"

"If she has a seizure, I'm here with her. I will be with her all through the night and my colleague will be here in an hour too. Lucy will be fine."

Jane let out a breath, feeling the slight relief on her shoulders. Jenny was one of her usual nurses before she had been granted more care hours for Lucy and the nurse was an absolute lifesaver when it came to Jane getting a good night's sleep. Bidding Jenny goodnight, she tiptoed out of the bedroom and headed downstairs. She sat back down on the sofa, placing the book she had been reading to Peter on the coffee table and picked up the TV remote. Flicking through the channels, Jane sighed heavily as she saw that nothing was on to take her interest enough when her mind was on other things.

Whilst the twins had been at preschool that morning she had attended an appointment with the director of The Netherfield Trust which offered respite breaks and activities for disabled children. When she had looked around the charity's base, she was quite impressed with how much land and the layout of the buildings. Even more so when she got to meet some other parents who accessed the charity's services and only heard positive things. Upon further talks with the director, she had been given more leaflets and sent away with a week offered for Lucy in case Jane wanted to put her in for a respite break.

She had spoken in length with her dad and her sisters on the topic and whether it was a good idea. All three had said it was for a lot of reasons. First of all, Lucy would be interacting with children just like her and an adult would be with her at all times. Secondly, the staff at the trust and even the volunteers were all trained and up-to-date with the latest research regarding children with disabilities and could look after Lucy properly. Thirdly, Lucy would be assigned an adult at all times whilst in the care of the charity. Finally, it meant that Jane could breathe and have some time for herself and give Peter some quality time which he sometimes missed out on. But despite the pros of it, she couldn't help but feel guilty; as if she was palming her child off on someone else.

But there was also the fact that she was exhausted. And her sisters had a point. She had lost her identity. All she had done for the last four years was parent and for the last two she had done it all on her own. Remembering what everyone had been telling her for the last few weeks, she silently made the decision to give it a go.

And then there was another matter on her mind; whether or not to give Charles a chance. It wasn't easy trying to find time for herself let alone trying to find time to pursue a romantic relationship with someone. Then there was the added fear of trusting someone and that made her hesitant. The last person she had been in a relationship with had walked out on her and their children because he couldn't handle having a disabled child. Her trust had been completely broken, along with her heart and she'd had to pick up the pieces by herself over the last two years. On top of that, her children had to come first and any new potential partner had to accept both her children and treat them the same, not differently just because one of them had a disability.

The thought of opening herself and her life up to someone new frightened her. She didn't know if she could bear it to love someone again only for them to decide that they couldn't handle the stress and pressures of raising Lucy with her. She knew that Lucy was hard work, better than most people knew. The sleepless nights, the seizures, the meltdowns, the making sure Lucy had a structured routine; all of it was hard work. But in her eyes, the struggles were worth it because she got to see her daughter's eyes light up whenever they made contact with her and she got to see the cuddles that Lucy and Peter shared despite Lucy not giving them to her brother that often. And how George could have walked out on all the positive things about their daughter only made Jane hate him even more.

Before she could think any more on the subject of Charles, her phone began to ring. Sighing, she hit the answer button and pressed the mobile to her ear.

"Hello Charlotte." Jane greeted.

"How are you doing? Have you made any decisions yet about Lucy?" Charlotte asked.

"Not too bad, I'm heading to bed in a minute. But I think I've decided to give the respite a try, it looks better than I imagined when it was first mentioned to me." She replied.

"Good. Listen, I didn't call to talk work stuff we can catch up on that tomorrow. I wanted to tell you that a good looking redhead came in today asking after you." Charlotte teased.

She sat upright, her heart racing.

"Charles?" she asked eagerly.

"Uh huh," Charlotte replied teasingly, "He asked me to give you his number in case you wanted to change your mind."

"And do you have it?"

Charlotte laughed, making Jane roll her eyes.

"I do," her friend confirmed, "I'll give it to you tomorrow."

"Thank you!"

Saying their goodbyes, Jane switched off the TV and giggled. Her heart raced faster in her chest at the thought of squashing her fears and texting Charles. Slow steps, she told herself. Get to know him first before you make any decisions on romance. With her mind made up, Jane got up from the sofa and headed upstairs for the night.

ooOoo

It was a balmy evening in early July, the lilacs and pinks of the sunset were painting the sky and Caroline knew that the dark blue night would arrive soon. She tossed her red hair over her shoulder and took a small sip of wine as she held the glass delicately to her lips. The light summer breeze swept past her and blew lightly against the back door to her brother's house. Just as she pulled the door back to its original position, having been moved slightly by the wind, she heard Charles calling her name from the kitchen.

"I'm in the garden, Charles!" Caroline called back.

Seconds later, her brother joined her; sitting in the empty garden chair next to her.

"Have you been enjoying yourself?" her brother asked, annoyance present in his tone of voice.

"I have," Caroline confirmed, her body slumped in the chair lazily as if filled with relaxation, "I have been _really_ enjoying myself."

Her brother frowned at her in suspicion. Caroline knew that look well.

"I said you could stay for a few days. It's been just over a week." Charles stated.

Caroline rolled her eyes, her brother didn't like putting up with her for long periods.

"Your point?" she asked, feigning innocence.

"How long are you planning on crashing in my house? Are you here for other reasons than to spend time with your big brother as you so claimed?" Charles questioned.

"No, it's just been a while since we've spent any time together and I thought maybe by extending my stay, we could enjoy some quality sibling time." Caroline answered.

Charles made a noise but let the matter go as he got up from his seat and went back inside the house. Caroline knew why he was suspicious of her motives for extending her visit. In truth she wasn't just here to spend time with her brother, she was hoping to at least be able to see William Darcy.

She'd always had a thing for her brother's best friend when they were growing up. He was good looking, he had a gorgeous smile, lovely eyes, a body that made her dream the wildest fantasies. On top of that, he was rich. Very rich. His family came from 'old money'. William Darcy was what Caroline would define as a catch. And she knew that he was available. Very available. But there were a few problems. Firstly, she'd had a shot with Darcy and had blown it. About two years after his wife had died she had asked William out for dinner and he had agreed. She had gone all out on her outfit, getting her hair and nails done, having her make-up applied and had even gone to top up her fake tan. He'd been the perfect gentleman, he had picked her up for their date and they had shared a nice and expensive meal. He had driven her back to her flat but she had made the mistake of kissing him too heatedly and freaked him out by inviting him to spend the night. Big mistake. William Darcy wasn't the type to sleep around on the first date. Secondly, her brother had been told about her behaviour and had belittled her by giving her a telling off like a child caught putting their hand in a sweet jar. Thirdly, any hope of her getting another date with William had been dashed when Charles had threatened to tell their father of her attempts of seducing her way into the Darcy family to access their endless supply of money. And that threat had been the one to make her take a step back from her plan to bag William Darcy. Sadly, she needed her father to pay for the expensive lifestyle that she enjoyed.

But this time she was determined to get another chance with William Darcy and the way to achieve that was to go through the person he loved the most in the world.

ooOoo

After tucking Mia into bed, Will quietly walked down the stairs and saw Elizabeth waiting for him at the front door. It had become a nice routine for all of them. Elizabeth was now an invited guest for dinner most nights and Will drove her home after he tucked Mia in. Their drives together were filled with getting to know more about each other. He listened and laughed at stories she told him of playing pranks on her sisters and mother, how she had joined the school football team to prove that girls could play after a classmate told her girls couldn't play. She told him about her father's early retirement for health reasons and how isolated she had felt during her marriage due to the pressures and expectations on her shoulders. In turn he had told her about his family, the age gap between him and his sister but how close he felt to Georgiana. He had told her about how he had met his wife, their life together and the dark early days after Natalie's death.

Their friendship was developing. Already he knew that he trusted her and liked her as if he had known her a lot longer than six weeks. She was honest, caring and had a welcoming ear whenever he or Mia needed someone to talk to. Aside from Charles and a few of his work colleagues who he sometimes socialised with, it had been a long time since he had enjoyed someone's company the way he looked forward to spending time with and getting to know Elizabeth.

"Did she go off alright?" Elizabeth asked.

"She did, she's never been a bad sleeper. The only exception is when she suffered with seizures." Will replied.

"I understand. My niece has epilepsy too."

"It's not easy to live with, I hated it so much to see her suffer but now she's on the medication to treat it."

"My sister is still going through it, trying to find the right treatment."

"She will eventually. I hope your niece doesn't suffer too badly. If your sister ever needs someone to talk to, I have an ear." Will offered.

"Thanks." Elizabeth replied.

The two said their goodbyes to Alice and left the house, climbing into Will's car parked on the driveway. Will reversed off the drive and started driving. The sun was hanging low in the sky, a nice mixture of pinks, purples and a darkening blue and the nice breeze entered the car as Elizabeth wound down her window.

"Do you still want us to come with you on Saturday?" Will asked.

Elizabeth looked over at him and nodded.

"If that's okay. I don't want anything too expensive but I need my own car and I need your opinion on what one to buy." She replied.

"You're the one that has to drive it." he pointed out.

"True. But I will be taking your daughter out in it when the summer holidays come around. I don't want to buy a car that you aren't happy with. For your peace of mind about safety, I'd rather have your input." Elizabeth said softly.

"Thank you."

"For what?"

"It means a lot to me that you value my opinion. That you would want me to help you and you care about Mia's safety so deeply." Will clarified.

He noticed her smile out of the corner of his eye. Her smile was infectious as he felt his mouth twinge at the corners.

"Mia is…a delightful girl. She is lovely and thoughtful and just what I needed." Elizabeth said brightly.

"Have you heard any more from your solicitor?"

"I had a list of things that David is willing to give to me in the divorce but I don't want anything from him."

"Why not? It's what you're legally entitled to." Will reminded her.

"I know. But our entire marriage was built on David's success. Now that we're divorcing, I want the next chapter of my life to be about my success. My dreams. And having money or anything from the previous chapter might taint that vision." Elizabeth said thoughtfully.

Will couldn't help but feeling the silent burst of pride at the woman sat next to him. He knew that she had struggles, the way she talked about her life with her soon-to-be-ex-husband was evidently more one-sided than a partnership. The sadness was present sometimes when she opened up about her marriage but it wasn't the type of sadness of losing the man she had loved for the past five years, it was something deeper. Like she had lost something that she had deeply wanted. Whatever it was, he hoped that one day she would be able to share that pain with someone. Not necessarily with him, just someone. Although he hoped and wanted her to feel safe enough with him to share that pain.

They talked a little more about the pending divorce, how Elizabeth had wrote a reply stating that she didn't want anything from her ex and wished to move forward with her life. He found it oddly refreshing to know someone who didn't care about money or material things, who just wanted to find some happiness. He hadn't known a woman like that in a long time.

As he pulled up outside her house and turned off the engine, he turned to look at her, her face illuminated under the streetlight lighting up his car.

"If you ever need to talk, I hope you know that I'm here for you." Will said softly.

She surprised him by taking his hand and giving it a grateful squeeze.

"I appreciate it, thank you." Elizabeth whispered.

But he didn't get a chance to say any more. The front door to her parent's house opened and a man began power walking out on to the street.

"THOMAS BENNET! WE HAVEN'T FINISHED THIS-"

He saw Elizabeth roll her eyes and mutter an apology before thanking him for the lift and getting out of the car. Watching her walk into her house and usher her mother inside quickly, he sat in his seat, his hand feeling the lingering softness of her touch.


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N:** Apologies for the lack of updates, life has been getting in the way again. Enjoy chapter nine! and I hope to update soon.

 **Chapter Nine**

Saturday came around rather quickly for Elizabeth. In all honesty, she had been looking forward to the weekend because it meant that she could buy the car that she had spent the last six weeks saving for and actually get out of the house this weekend. Her parents had been having an almost-week-long argument, on a subject she had yet to discover, and she wanted more than anything to avoid spending any time listening to her mother's loud shrieking and her father storming out of the house just to get some peace. That morning she had ate her breakfast as quick as she could, gotten herself dressed and had climbed into Will's car at nine-thirty just as Jane had pulled up outside to drop Lucy off so she could have some time with Peter.

"Morning Lizzy." Mia greeted brightly from the backseat.

Elizabeth clipped her seatbelt in and turned to face the little girl.

"Good morning Mia. Did you sleep well?" she asked.

"I did. Daddy says we're helping you choose a car this morning."

"You are. Do you think you can help me?" Elizabeth asked.

Mia nodded with a smile as Elizabeth turned to greet Will.

"Did you sleep well? I heard your parents arguing as you came out of the house." Will said quietly, pulling out of his parking space.

"Not really but I'll be fine. If I save hard for the next few months I can get my own place." Elizabeth sighed.

Will placed his focus on the road ahead but gave her a sympathetic smile.

"Have you given any thought to what kind of place you'd like?" he asked.

"A house preferably. Maybe a two-bed so my niece and nephew can stay over sometimes. I'm not fussy."

"Are you thinking of renting or buying with a mortgage?"

"It depends how much of a deposit I'd need for a mortgage. I'll see what my situation is like in September." Elizabeth said.

"If you'd like any help…" he offered.

"Thank you," Elizabeth smiled, "I'm sure I'll come to you at some point."

They continued to drive to the first car salesroom that Elizabeth had found on a quick google search and parked up the car. All three of them stepped out of the car and within seconds were greeted by an enthusiastic salesman in a suit.

"Good morning, what a beautiful family you make!" the man greeted.

"Oh uh…"

"What can I do for you lovely people today?" the man asked.

"I'm here to buy a car." Elizabeth replied politely.

"I can certainly help you with that. Have you thought about a particular make and model?" the salesman asked.

In truth, she hadn't thought about what type of make and model of car she wanted. She just wanted something that was safe, not that old and was practical to drive her around and those she needed to drive around too. The three of them followed the salesman into the showroom to look around the selection of cars they sold.

"The cars we sell are second hand but are in very good condition. We offer a finance option or you can pay outright. All our cars are cleaned and polished every other day to maintain a high standard of cleanliness and are regularly checked with MOT testing carried out the day before the buyer takes possession of the car. We also offer a twelve-month warranty on all vehicles we sell." The salesman informed them.

Elizabeth looked around at the various cars, stopping for a few minutes at a few that had taken her interest. The few she had looked at were within her price range. After all, she was getting paid a lot more than a normal childminder would because William Darcy wanted to pay generously for someone to care for the most important person in his life. It was only thanks to her employer's generosity that she was able to get her own car so quickly and through her own determination to save her money rather than spend it so quickly.

"Do you offer test drives so Elizabeth can get a feel for the car?" Will asked.

"We do. However, it's company policy that a member of staff accompanies the customer on every test drive." The salesman replied.

The next half an hour was spent trying out two cars that Elizabeth had taken an interest in. Will and Mia had waited for her back at the salesroom for her and when she had arrived back after taking the second car for a quick test drive up the road, she had made her choice. A blue ford focus that was four years with a good MOT history and wasn't too expensive to insure and tax. An added bonus was the mileage and only had minor repairs needed on previous MOTs. Happy with her choice, the salesman promised that she'd be able to pick her car up the following week after a new MOT had been carried out and the paperwork had been drawn up for her to sign.

The three left the showroom and climbed back into Will's car.

"Do you need anywhere to be today? I mean now that you have your car sorted?" Will asked curiously.

Elizabeth shook her head.

"No. My dad is babysitting my niece and nephew today and my mum has decided to avoid the house today. But still, it will be tense when she eventually decides to return." She replied.

"Well if you'd like to…Mia and I are having some family over for a barbecue this afternoon and we'd really like it if everyone got the chance to meet you." Will offered.

An invitation to a family barbecue. This would be interesting. But she didn't know whether or not to accept Will's invitation.

"Oh…I don't know…wouldn't it be weird?" Elizabeth asked.

"Not for us. It's only my father and sister who are coming. Maybe a cousin or two depending on whether they can make it."

"Come to ours Lizzy, please." Mia pleaded from the backseat.

Meeting Mia's pleading and playful gaze, she laughed. She could see it in the little girl's eyes that this was something that would mean a lot to Mia and as she glanced at Will, she could see it would mean a lot to him too if she agreed to meet his family.

"Okay. I'll come to the barbecue." Elizabeth said brightly.

Mia gave a little cheer and Will smiled widely as they clipped their seatbelts in and drove away from the car showroom.

ooOoo

Jane sat nervously at the table, her fingers tapping slowly against the mug she had cupped in her hands. Her heart was beating fast in her chest and despite the air conditioning blowing ice-cold air above her table, she still felt the sweat dripping down her back. It had been years since she had done this. Years since she had gotten to know someone of the opposite sex. But ever since she had text Charles asking him to meet her at this little café not too far from her parents' house, she knew that she had to do this. For so long she had felt isolated, she didn't know anyone else who had a child with additional needs and her only interaction with adults were with her parents, sisters and her business partner for a long period of time.

The café door opened with a little ping of the bell above the door. Jane looked up and saw Charles walking towards her table. She smiled nervously at him as he sat opposite her.

"Hi, I'm glad you came." Jane greeted.

"I was happy to hear from you." Charles smiled.

There was a few moments of silence as the waitress came over to take Charles' order and offered to refill Jane's coffee. When the waitress went back behind the counter to make their drinks, the two's eyes met again.

"So…how have you been?" Jane asked.

"Busy…trying to decorate my new house…working…trying to avoid my sister…" Charles replied, adding a laugh at the last part of his sentence.

"So you have a sister? Is she that much of an annoyance to you?" Jane asked, showing interest.

Charles pulled a face, one that Jane associated with the man feeling mixed emotions towards his sibling. Of course, her sisters had annoyed her plenty of times as they were growing up together but now she was thankful that Lizzy and Lydia supported her where and when they could.

"Caroline…she's my sister and of course I love my sister…but she does things that I don't like. She has this habit of being sneaky and sadly it doesn't seem like she will ever grow out of it."

Jane pulled a sympathetic face as the waitress came over and placed their drinks in front of them. They both thanked the waitress and looked at one another with ease, it seemed natural falling into conversation with each other. She just hoped that he wouldn't mind getting to know her first before pursuing anything more.

"Is your sister truly that bad?" she asked.

"At times. She's currently staying with me on an extended visit." Charles sighed.

"I'm sorry to hear she's a pain in the arse." Jane said.

Charles chuckled, his blue eyes sparkling as he met her gaze.

"I suppose it's natural to feel that way sometimes towards your siblings." He mused.

"I guess. I certainly felt annoyance towards my sisters when we were growing up."

"I suppose you get to witness it with your twins."

Jane's face fell. If anything her twins didn't fight like normal siblings. Lucy didn't understand boundaries and often liked to play on her own instead of with Peter. Very rarely did her daughter take her aggression and frustration out on her twin brother; she took it out on the adults around her who tried to soothe her outbursts.

"So…tell me about your children." Charles requested with a smile.

"Well…they're four years old and will turn five in October. They're wonderful, funny, amazing little beings. Peter likes football, going to the park, painting, Lego. He likes going to the zoo. Lucy…she likes Peppa Pig, fluffy things, painting." Jane started.

"I like their names." Charles complimented.

"Thanks. I named them after my paternal grandparents…well my nan was called Lucille so I shortened it to Lucy for my little girl."

"I think it's lovely you named them after people who mean a lot to you."

"They did," Jane confirmed, "Sadly, they both passed away the year before I felt pregnant with the twins. But they lived a full life."

Charles gave her a small smile before taking a mouthful of his drink but his blue eyes remained on her. It reminded her of the times when she and George were first together, how he would look at her with such interest until he had proven himself to be the exact opposite of the man she thought he was. This time, she was determined to get to know someone before she opened her heart to romance again. What she couldn't deny was that she was attracted to Charles, he certainly made her heart skip a beat as he took an interest in what she said. How easy it was to have a conversation with him with no awkwardness. The genuine smile of a man who seemed perfectly nice.

But she had to take this slowly. It wasn't just about her anymore. She had two little people that gave her purpose, who she lived her entire life for. And while Peter and Lucy didn't remember their dad, she certainly wasn't about to introduce a new man into their lives and then have them disappear when it got tough, right after the twins had bonded with a new potential boyfriend. She didn't want to think Charles was like that but at the same time, not many men would be willing to step up and accept her children; especially when one of her children had a disability.

"Is the children's father involved? I mean…you said you're a single mother and you don't have much free time. You can tell me if I'm being nosey, I won't take offence." Charles said.

Jane shook her head.

"No. He walked out on us when the twins were two." She replied.

"Oh…I'm sorry…"

"Don't be. He walked away and didn't look back, he wasn't made for it. The best thing that came out of my relationship with George was the children and I don't regret it."

"I know that I don't really know you…but hearing the way you talk about your twins…it's admirable and shows how strong you are to do it by yourself." Charles whispered.

Jane blushed, averting her eyes down to her coffee. Charles leaned over the table, placing a finger under her chin and gently bringing her gaze back to his with a confused expression on his face.

"I'm sorry…have I upset you?" he asked quietly.

Jane shook her head.

"No. I'm not used to hearing people describe me as strong. Unless they're family." She mumbled.

He smiled again. God his smile was infectious. She felt the corners of her mouth twitch into returning it.

"I'm not a parent so I can't imagine how hard it is to be a single parent raising two children. But I'd like to see you again. If you're willing that is. No pressure. But I want you to know that I like you and if you want to get to know me slowly, as friends, as more than that, whatever you want; I don't want to go anywhere unless we aren't on the same page." Charles stated warmly.

"I'd like to see you again. But it would have to be slow because I can't promise you anything. Peter and Lucy come first and my life is very complicated and stressful."

"To slow steps." Charles said, raising his cup of coffee.

"To slow steps." Jane agreed, mirroring his actions.

ooOoo

After quickly dropping back home to inform her father that she would be out for the rest of the afternoon, Elizabeth headed back to the Darcy residence with Will and Mia. Alice had already begun to prep food in the kitchen, ensuring there were enough rolls, burgers, sausages, kebabs, drumsticks and steak for everyone to eat. Heading outside into the garden, Elizabeth felt herself surprised with how much outdoor space Will and Mia had. The garden stretched so far back she could only just make out the end of it by squinting. A large oak tree stood magnificently at the bottom of the garden, with it's great branch holding up a manmade swing which was evidently Mia's. A large summerhouse was built to the side of the tree, sat perfectly under the afternoon sun and contained a small side table and a comfortable sun lounger. A bike shelter stood opposite the summerhouse housed three bicycles which Elizabeth assumed belonged to Will, Alice and Mia. All the while she stood on a well maintained deck with a large patio table with six chairs and a large gas barbecue on the other side.

"Can I help with anything?" Elizabeth asked.

"Come and choose a drink if you'd like," Will offered, turning on the barbecue.

Elizabeth headed towards the kitchen, offering to help Alice with the food as the housekeeper walked passed carrying an armful of plates to which her offer was declined with a warm smile. She carried on to the kitchen, looking around for something to drink and seconds later Will entered the room.

"What would you like? We've got white wine, red wine, prosecco, cider, beer. Or if you'd prefer a soft drink we have coke or lemonade. I believe we have some squash left." Will asked.

"Just some lemonade please. I don't want to go home buzzed if my parents are arguing again." Elizabeth replied.

Will opened the cupboard and took out a glass before closing it again. He placed it on the counter top and turned to face her.

"What do they argue about so much?" he asked curiously.

Elizabeth watched as he went over to the fridge and pulled out the bottle of lemonade and walked back over to where the glass stood on the counter.

"Anything. Everything. Lately it's been about my father staying out with his friends when the pub shuts down for the night. They argue about babysitting the twins-"

"They argue about looking after their grandchildren?" Will interrupted with a frown.

Elizabeth nodded.

"Yes. Not so much about looking after Peter but my niece is a complex child and difficult to look after at times. My mother focuses on the 'bad' things instead of focusing on Lucy's strengths. My dad loves the twins unconditionally and wants to spend as much time with them as possible. Basically, they disagree on how much of a break they should give Jane and it's starting to stress my father out." She sighed.

"It must be really difficult for you." Will said sympathetically.

"I'll be moving out soon. I just hope that the dust will settle."

"I'm sure it will. In time."

Elizabeth smiled slightly as she watched him pour her the drink and place the bottle of lemonade down on the counter and handed her the glass. She took it, thanking him quietly and for the briefest moment their skin touch each other's. A featherlight brush of the hand. Her eyes met his, so warm and…a lovely shade of brown.

Before their conversation could continue, the doorbell rang. Will gave her a parting smile and left the kitchen to answer the door.

ooOoo

The afternoon had been a success. Upon the arrival of his dad and his sister, Will had immediately introduced his family members to Elizabeth after walking everyone through to the kitchen. But instead of introducing her as Mia's childminder he had introduced the beautiful brunette as his friend.

"A friend eh?" his father had asked curiously, all the while eyeing him up with a smirk.

Luckily, Elizabeth hadn't seemed to have noticed that his father was already amused with the fact that this was the first woman he had introduced to them since Natalie's death. To Elizabeth it may have come across as a friendly introduction but to Will; he knew that his father was already putting together in his head that there was a possibility that Elizabeth was more than that.

Once outside when everyone had helped themselves to a drink, the curiosity of his father didn't cease. Reginald Darcy was definitely taking an interest in Elizabeth. His father had quizzed the poor woman on practically every aspect of her life. If she felt uncomfortable, she didn't show it or voice it. In fact, she seemed very at ease and was only too happy to converse with his father and even managed to get Georgiana to come out of her shell a little when the two women were talking about their mutual interest in literature.

They had eaten plenty of food between all of them, with Georgiana expressing disappointment that their cousins, Anne and Richard, hadn't been able to make this family barbecue. Mia had then proceeded to start a water fight to which everyone joined in and Will found himself unable to take his eyes off Elizabeth. Watching her squeal as a water gun drenched her and bowls of water were chucked in her direction, the sound of her musical laughter and the pure happiness and light in her green eyes made him truly enjoy the afternoon. It was magical to see someone that happy despite all the hardships she had recently endured.

As late afternoon headed into early evening, the water fight ended and he found himself standing on his driveway with Elizabeth, the two of them alone as they waited for her taxi.

"Are you sure you want to take a taxi? I don't mind giving you a lift home." Will said, for the third time.

Elizabeth smiled gratefully.

"I appreciate it but we're all worn out so I don't want to tire you out further." She replied.

"Okay. Just let me know that you got home safely, you can't be too careful with taxi drivers these days."

"I will."

As the taxi pulled up outside the house, Will felt a surge of surprise as Elizabeth wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly.

"Thank you for today," she whispered, "It's been the best day I've had in a long time."

Before he could reply, she let him go and climbed into her taxi, driving off into the evening. Will took a few moments alone before he headed back into the house and walked through to the kitchen. Georgiana, Mia and Alice were watching a film in the living room whilst his father appeared to be waiting for him in the kitchen.

"Elizabeth seems like a lovely girl." Reginald mused.

"She is," Will confirmed quietly, "Did you like her?"

"I did," Reginald said in just above a whisper, "I was surprised to learn from my granddaughter that she's also your employee?"

Ah. He had forgotten to mention that little detail.

"Well…she's my childminder…but we've sort of…bonded I guess. She's becoming a very good friend." Will stuttered defensively.

Reginald smirked again. That bloody smirk.

"I don't doubt it son. But the last time I saw you react this way to a woman, it was when you first met Natalie."

So that's what his father was thinking. That he was romantically interested in Elizabeth.

"Dad…I know where you're going with this…I assure you that Elizabeth and I are just friends. We are keeping a professional relationship separate from our friendship and we know how to prevent them from overlapping." Will said quickly.

"Even so. I hope you find some happiness again with a woman, Fitzwilliam, and as first impressions go, Elizabeth definitely gave a good one. But getting romantically involved with your employee can be messy. If the path you are on does proceed down a romantic one, I urge you to be careful. For everyone's sake." Reginald cautioned.

With nothing more to say, Reginald left the kitchen to join the others in the living room for the film; leaving Will to think about his father's words.


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N:** I can only keep apologising for the lack of frequent updates, I wish that life would ease up some free time for me but unfortunately, this isn't the case at the moment. So, I'm going to take a three month hiatus and I hope that this gives me enough time to write a few chapters and get ahead of my writing to give you lovely readers frequent updates. Please accept my apologies and I hope that you will stick with me while I continue this story.

 **Chapter Ten**

Monday morning was the start of her plan. She had watched from the taxi Darcy's little brat being dropped off to school by the glorified babysitter and had waited for the many parents to vacate the school premises and for the school bell to ring before she exited the taxi and paid for her fare. She crossed the road, her high heels skidding across the tarmac and she stepped on to the pavement, smoothing the sides of her black pencil skirt and tossing her long red hair over her shoulder. Caroline walked through the gates to the school office, pressing on the buzzer before being allowed entry to the school.

"Miss Bingley?" the receptionist asked with a smile.

"Yes." Caroline confirmed, not returning the greeting smile.

"Take a seat, Mrs Phillips will be with you shortly."

As she sat down on the most uncomfortable chair she had ever sat upon in her life, Caroline tapped her fingers impatiently against her leopard print handbag. She could hear the tapping of the keyboards from the admin staff in the office opposite where she sat and the sound of telephones ringing which she assumed were parents calling to report their child was off sick. In truth, she didn't want to be here. This was the last thing she wanted to be doing but it was a necessary evil that she kept telling herself would be worth it in the end. If she wanted to become involved with Darcy, she had to show an interest. She had to pretend she was a 'reformed character'.

More minutes passed as she sat waiting for the headteacher. Caroline watched as the children brought back the class registers in pairs, staring at her and smiling politely. Gah. She hated children.

"Caroline?" a voice asked in a high pitched tone.

Standing up from her seat, she put on her best smile and shook the woman's hand.

"Lovely to meet you in person, Mrs Phillips." Caroline replied sweetly.

The woman smiled at her and started to take her on a tour of the school. Mrs Phillips was an aging woman, with tight wrinkles around her eyes and mouth, her neck covered by a high collared shirt. The woman's black hair was streaked with thick grey lines and the woman smiled too often in Caroline's opinion. Running her hands down her black pencil skirt, she once again smoothed the sides and met the eye of the headmistress.

"Nervous?" Mrs Phillips asked, continuing on their tour.

"A little," Caroline replied, "But I'm looking forward to working with the children."

"It is quite rewarding helping a child to learn something new." Mrs Phillips agreed.

They continued through the school building, with Caroline making a mental note of where the staff room was and where the year four classroom was where she caught a quick glimpse of Darcy's little brat. She watched briefly as Darcy's little girl sat at a table of four with three other little girls and chatted away about whatever lesson the teacher was trying to teach.

"I think you'll like it here," Mrs Phillips said with a smile, once the tour was concluded, "Well then, the sooner you get started, the quicker we can get you qualified to be a teaching assistant."

Caroline gave a false beam of excitement.

"I can't wait!" she said with fake enthusiasm, "Which year group shall I start with?"

"How about we start you in Mr Moore's year four class?" Mrs Phillips suggested.

"Perfect."

The two women walked back up the corridor to Mr Moore's classroom, with Mrs Phillips knocking on the classroom door before entering. The entire thirty year four pupils fell to silence and looked at the headteacher and Caroline with curiosity.

"Good morning year four! Today I'd like to introduce a new member of staff who is looking forward to working with you all. Say hello to Miss Bingley." Mrs Phillips instructed brightly.

But Caroline didn't focus on the twenty-nine pupils who chorused good morning to her. Her gaze instantly fell on the matching brown eyes that Mia Darcy shared with her father. The man that Caroline was in love with and would stop at nothing to claim as her own.

ooOoo

That evening after finishing Mia's trampolining class at the community centre, Elizabeth returned to the Darcy residence with her charge and instructed Mia to change and wash for dinner. As she walked through to the kitchen, she was greeted by an unfamiliar face who was chatting with Alice. The man stood up straight as her green eyes met that light shade of blue, one hand running through his longish auburn hair as his eyes travelled over her body. Elizabeth felt an uncomfortable shiver down her spine as he stared at her for a few good seconds before clearing his throat. She wasn't used to men looking at her the way this man was.

"And you must be the famous Elizabeth!" the man greeted with a toothy grin.

He held out his hand and she shook it with a confused expression on her face.

"I'm Richard," the man introduced, "I'm Darcy's cousin. Fitzwilliam has told me all about you."

"Fitzwilliam?" Elizabeth questioned.

"Will. His real name is Fitzwilliam, although he prefers to shorten it to William." Richard clarified.

At the oven, Alice chuckled as she pulled a pasta bake and garlic bread out of the oven.

"Any chance to tell that little tale, Richard." The housekeeper smiled.

"Of course Alice," Richard grinned, "Teasing my cousin on the origin of his first name is a favourite pastime of mine."

Elizabeth watched as Alice rolled her eyes and put her attention back on the dinner which she was serving up onto plates.

"Elizabeth, are you staying for dinner tonight?" Alice asked.

"If that's okay, I don't want to be too much trouble-"

"I can assure you, Elizabeth, that it wouldn't." Richard said with a wink.

"You certainly seem eager for me to stay." Elizabeth pointed out sharply.

"Call me curious," Richard replied defensively, "I wanted to put a name to the face."

"Why?"

"Curiosity."

And that was the only answer she got. Minutes later when the dining table was set with steaming plates of pasta bake and garlic bread, the front door slammed to a shut and Will entered the dining room moments later and sat with the rest of them. Conversation flowed, from Richard and Mia talking about her new activities to Richard talking about his memories from when he and Will were Mia's age. She finally heard the story of Will's first name origin and noticed that Will remained quiet for most of the meal, only really engaging in conversation if it was directed at him or speaking with his daughter.

"So, Elizabeth, tell me, how long have you been working for my cousin?" Richard asked, leaning over the table to study her more closely.

"Seven weeks. It's been rather enjoyable." Elizabeth replied.

"And what do you think of the family? Of my cousin?" Richard questioned, one eyebrow raised.

She felt uncomfortable. From what she had observed of Richard Fitzwilliam over the course of the evening was that he asked a lot of questions and paid her a lot of attention. Whilst he seemed like a man who was liked by his family, well Mia in particular and Alice seemed at ease with him, it seemed to not only make her uncomfortable but also made Will uncomfortable too.

"I like them all a lot," she answered honestly, "I'm grateful they've allowed me and trust me to share their daily lives with them."

Richard smiled at her warmly.

"I can see why you're so well talked about," he said quietly.

She turned her attention back to the rest of her dinner and ate quickly. Richard turned back to conversation with Will although her boss wasn't really in the mood for conversation with his cousin. Instead of talking, she merely politely replied to any questions that Richard asked her, such as her family life, where she grew up, her life at university, what she liked to do in her spare time. The usual questions. But she was taken aback when everyone had finished their dinner and Mia had gone upstairs to wash and ready herself for bed when Richard stood up from the dining table and handed her a scrap of paper.

"What's this?" Elizabeth asked, frowning in confusion.

"My phone number. This has been nice but I'd like to get to know you better when it's just two of us across a dinner table." Richard said flirtatiously.

She felt her cheeks redden in embarrassment. Before she could say anything on what had just happened, Richard shouted his goodbyes and left the house. After a few minutes, Elizabeth had recovered from her surprise and met the blank expression on Will's face.

ooOoo

"It was…interesting…meeting your cousin tonight." Elizabeth commented.

The two of them were sat alone on the sofa, the TV flickering on a low volume reading the news highlights. Mia had been tucked into bed twenty minutes ago whilst Alice was now finishing cleaning up the dinner plates and cutlery. All the while, Will had tucked his daughter into bed and then took ten minutes to calm himself down from the frustration of his cousin's unexpected intrusion to dinner tonight and had practically been invisibly marking his territory on Elizabeth right in front of him.

It bothered him. He knew that it shouldn't. But it bothered him.

But why did it bother him? Elizabeth was a lovely woman. Caring. Kind. Attractive. She had an infectious smile, a musical laugh and a softness to her voice which made him instantly relax after a hard day at work. She was amazing with his child and was so invested in helping Mia to achieve her potential. Any man would be lucky to have Elizabeth. She was his friend. But also his employee. So, why did it bother him that Richard had taken an interest in her?

"Did you like him?" Will questioned curiously and perhaps, a little too quickly.

Luckily, Elizabeth didn't seem to note his eagerness to have his question, his fears, his racing heart with nerves waiting to be calmed, answered.

Elizabeth pulled a face and shrugged her shoulders.

"He asked a lot of questions and it made me uncomfortable at times. I didn't want to be rude and tell him to mind his own business, I was on the clock and he is your family." She answered.

"You know he's hoping for a date?" he said, trying and praying that it didn't come across that it bothered him.

All the while he was hoping that she wouldn't give Richard what he wanted. She gave him an unsure smile.

"He is," she confirmed, "But I don't think I'm ready for that."

Will felt a wave of relief rush over him like sea meeting the sand urgently in a crash of tides.

"It's still too soon for you, isn't it?"

"I'm still trying to process the changes in my life. It's been eight weeks since David told me he wanted a divorce and I moved back home. The past weeks have been a positive change while I have focused on myself for once and I credit that to you and Mia for giving me a purpose. But I have a lot of healing to do before I even consider dating again. There are things…things that will take me a while…before I completely accept them…" she explained.

Nodding his understanding, they both stood from the sofa and he saw her to her car which sat on the driveway. Will waved to her goodbye as she got into her car and drove away and stood in his front doorway until he saw her car disappear from sight. He hadn't noticed that Alice stood behind him with a sad smile etched on her face.

"I've known you for a long time Fitzwilliam," the housekeeper said softly, "And I know that you have feelings for Elizabeth."

Will turned around to face Alice, kicking the door shut with his foot.

"How am I supposed to switch them off? Against my better judgement I've come to feel for her more than what a friend does." He sighed heavily.

Whether Alice had the words or not, Will didn't know. All he knew as Alice hugged him tightly, as a mother would hug her child, that his heart ached when he had to say goodbye to her at the end of the evening and he longed for the moments he could spend in her presence more than he should feel that need. His father's warning was all he had thought about over the weekend and if anything, his unrealised for feelings had only been recognised in that moment. He couldn't date his employee but he couldn't imagine his life without her in it now that the past eight weeks had been made lighter just by her existence and presence in their lives.

"What am I going to do Alice?" Will whispered.

"I don't know, Will, I wish I had the answer you need." Alice whispered back.

With nothing else to say, the two let go of each other and Will headed upstairs and shut himself away in his study, hoping that the paperwork he had brought home from work with him would provide a distraction to the beautiful brunette with stunning green eyes who occupied his mind day and night.

ooOoo

Three minutes. A lot can happen in three minutes. Like the instance of your life changing again when you look at the test to see if there is two little pink lines when you were wishing for only one. At least, that's what George Wickham believed. He had been through this once before and gotten the two pink lines but he hoped this time would be different.

Sat to his left was his current 'girlfriend'. A woman who he cared for but didn't see himself settling down with. Her name was Lindsay Younge and the two had met through a friend of hers at her workplace. They had only been together for six months and now he was sat here silently praying that he wasn't about to father another child he couldn't provide for.

"George, what do we do if it's positive?" Lindsay asked in a scared whisper.

Looking at her with scared eyes, he tucked a lock of loose blonde hair behind her ear and stroked the stray tear away from her brown eyes. Why did she have to go all teary on him? He didn't have the answers that she was looking for. For Christs sake, he'd already left two children behind and hadn't looked back. He couldn't provide for a child. For one thing, he didn't have a career, he flitted from job to job unable to settle down. Currently he worked as a barman doing night shifts in a nightclub and could only just about afford to privately rent a room in a shared house with four other men.

"I don't know Linds. I wish I knew." George sighed, running his hands through his brown hair in disappointment.

"I'm scared." Lindsay whispered, her voice breaking and the tears rolling down her cheeks.

No shit Sherlock. He was frigging petrified. Why did the stupid condom have to break? Why hadn't she gone to the pharmacy like they agreed and bought the morning after pill? Why was he yet again, four years nearly five years on, sat in this exact situation?

"I am too." He said through gritted teeth.

Luckily, Lindsay wasn't focused on his annoyance and frustration. Her hands shakily picked up the pregnancy test from the table and turned it over, letting out a scared sob as she read the result. George looked over and felt his heart sink in his chest.

There were two pink lines staring up at him. Just like the time Jane had discovered that she was pregnant with their children.

The test was positive. Lindsay was pregnant.

George Wickham could become a father again for the third time.

Shit.


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N:** Thank you all for your patience, I hope some of you are still with me on this. I've decided that instead of a three month hiatus to get ahead on chapters, which doesn't do well putting pressure on myself or my anxiety, I will just chill and write what I can, when I can. And due to this approach, you lovely readers get a little more content than my usual of 3000 something word chapters.

I don't know when the next one will be ready but I'm hoping soon :)

 **Chapter Eleven**

Tuesday lunch times were always particularly busy and it was this particular Tuesday that Jane found herself helping Charlotte at the bakery. Customers, old and new, were piling the queue out of the door continuously between midday and two in the afternoon before Jane could stop serving customers and cleaning tables to head back to the office to finish her paperwork. It had been a stressful weekend. Between Lucy being given her autism diagnosis the previous Thursday after months of assessments and meetings, it was just another diagnosis to add to what seemed like a never ending list of conditions her daughter had been labelled with by medical professionals. Chromosome deletion. Epilepsy. Autism. Developmental delay. Speech disorder. All of it caused because her daughter was missing a tiny portion of genes in her chromosome and affected her so massively.

She'd also had to arrange for someone to collect the twins from their last day of preschool today. It was official, both of them had now started their summer holiday and would have their first day of 'big school' in the second week of September. This was another big fight for her to deal with. The Local Authority had finally agreed to amend Lucy's EHCP funding for the unit and provided her with an additional five hours of support on top of the twenty they had offered to begin with and while it still wasn't enough, Jane had to take it but was now pursuing a case for the tribunal court and prayed that when the hearing occurred in a few months that she would win the case and get Lucy into a more suitable setting for her needs. After asking her parents a few times if they could get the twins from preschool whilst she was working, and after many times her mother had argued with her father on the matter, Lydia had gone to collect them instead; luckily it was her day off and had the time to do so.

Just as she was about to head back into the office to finish up the paperwork and the last of the summer shift schedules, she heard a familiar voice call her name. Turning around, she found herself smiling brightly at the man she had decided to give a chance. His bright blue eyes seemed even brighter than before and she had only just noticed that when he smiled at her that he had two little dimples in his cheeks.

Jane walked out on to the dining area and hugged him in greeting. The smell of his aftershave, not overpowering to the senses, filled her nostrils and she released him, still smiling.

"Hey, I didn't know you were working today." Charles said brightly.

"Charlotte asked me to come in to help her out." Jane explained.

"Well I'm glad I caught you. I wanted to invite you to a housewarming barbecue I'm having on Saturday. My house is finally sorted and my last box has been unpacked so I thought that I'd throw a little celebration."

"Oh…I'd love to come…but I don't think I can get a babysitter-"

"Bring your children, I'd love to meet them."

His gesture that he wanted to get to know her and her children, the fact that he invited her and wanted her to celebrate his milestone with him touched her. It was thoughtful. But on such short notice it wasn't exactly doable. Lucy was hard to predict even during her well managed routine day-by-day. To take her daughter to a house full of strangers where they would no doubt be strangers – and a lot of them – music, loud chatter of different conversations, no way for her to calm down if she needed some time out and in a place where she couldn't regulate her emotions or feel safe wasn't ideal. There was also the fact that Lucy would only eat a select amount of foods which Jane would usually have to package for her whenever they went anywhere. She would have loved to attend Charles' barbecue but she didn't think it was possible without some way to give Lucy some notice and time to prepare. Even if she could prepare her daughter.

"I would love to but I don't think it's possible." Janes said regretfully.

Charles' face fell.

"Oh…I understand…too much too soon…maybe some other time. Anyway, I won't keep you. See you soon." He said quickly and rushed out the door.

She felt a pang of guilt. It was evident he had been hoping that she would say yes and now she had hurt his feelings. She hadn't meant to. But she had to think of her children. At the same time, she knew that she couldn't leave things awkward between her and Charles. Before she could even process that she was supposed to be finishing her paperwork, she rushed out the bakery door and rushed after Charles.

"Charles, wait!" Jane called.

He stopped on the street, moving over to the side to avoid getting in other people's way. Jane caught up to him, panting as she tried to catch her breath.

"Jane, it's fine," Charles smiled sadly, "I understand that it's too soon for you and the children. We aren't dating, we've only known each other for a little while so I get that there needs to be some boundaries."

"Well, there is that," Jane agreed, "But there's a little more to my life than I've already told you."

Charles frowned.

"Don't tell me. You're an undercover spy and the children are really robots?" he joked.

Jane laughed a little.

"Not that insane. Can you come back to the bakery? I can take a break and I'll try to explain."

As if he didn't need any time to think over her request, Charles nodded and the two of them walked back to the bakery.

ooOoo

"I don't understand, Ms Bennet, as your solicitor it's my job to ensure that you get a fair settlement out of the divorce."

It was the third time her solicitor, Ian Forster, had stated he didn't understand her statement that she didn't want anything from her divorce.

"How many times do I have to repeat myself?" Elizabeth questioned tiredly.

Her solicitor frowned, taking a finger to scratch an itch on his balding head.

"Ms Bennet…"

At least they had finally established that she was reverting back to her maiden name and already signing off forms as if she were unmarried. During their first few meetings when the proceedings had been started he had been calling her by her married name.

"I've been a solicitor for just under twenty years and you are the first client I've ever represented who didn't want any of their spouse's money." Ian sighed.

"Well I'm not materialistic. The money that David is offering would be enough to see me through the next five years if I was careful spending it. What would I even do with that money?" Elizabeth ranted.

"Invest it. Buy your own property. Buy a car. Go on holiday. Or ten. Or travel the world. Or spend it on family-"

A lightbulb flashed in her head at the mention of spending the money on family. David wasn't rich rich, certainly not from old money, but he didn't particularly believe in spending money on luxuries. He was a surgeon, a well paid one, and most of his money after the mortgage on their London flat had been paid, and all the bills and necessary extras were paid, the rest of his money went into savings accounts and left untouched. But her solicitor's idea about spending the money on family, or giving the money to her niece and nephew to be saved and used for their futures did appeal to her.

"Do you know what? I don't want to argue with you on this subject any more. Tell David I accept his generous offer he's presented to me and want the divorce sorted in the new few months. I'm ready to move on to the next chapter of my life." Elizabeth requested politely.

Smiling, Ian Forster rose from the kitchen table and shook her head. He gathered up his brown leather suitcase, straightened his aging suit and opened the kitchen door; only for Fran to stumble forward in the kitchen doorway.

"Mum you shouldn't eavesdrop!" Elizabeth scolded.

Her mother cleared her throat and the solicitor exited the house, the front door slamming to a light shut.

"Well…how else am I supposed to learn anything? You don't exactly keep your father and I in the loop with what's going on!" her mother chastised.

Elizabeth rolled her eyes and took a glass out of one of the cupboards, closing the little door and took the glass to the sink. As she turned on the cold tap and waited for the glass to fill, her mother had decided yet again to deliver the same old speech she was growing tired of.

"You were married to David for five years, Lizzy. We thought you were happy and god, I had prayed you two would have at least given us a grandchild by now-"

She still hadn't told her parents the truth behind her and David's divorce. She hadn't told her mother that she wasn't able to conceive a child. As she stood at the sink, forgetting about the water filling her glass as it was now pouring over her hand like a small waterfall, she toned out her mother's ramblings and her mind and thoughts drifted back to her last day as David's wife.

"David, you've been quiet all day. Avoiding me where you can. When I walk into a room you walk out of it and when I sit down, you stand up. What's the matter?" she asked softly.

Her husband took a few minutes before he finally turned his attention away from his book to look at her. And when he did look at her, she noticed the cold expression on his face, the hurt that filled his eyes as he stared at her as if staring at her through cracked glass.

"I can't do this anymore, Liz."

She frowned in confusion. The last few days he had been avoiding her where he could. When he was at work, he refused to answer her text messages and would only message her to let her know that he would be working overtime or going to the pub or the gym after work and not to wait up. On his days off he would busy himself by going out to do errands and not come home until she was getting ready for bed. Whenever she tried to talk to him he would either leave the room, busy himself with housework or shut her down by stating he was too tired to talk to her. Was he talking about his cold treatment of her lately? She knew things were strained between them, what with all the fertility tests they had to do recently and their attempts to conceive a child were often brought with f rustration.

"Can't do what?"

"This. Us. I want a divorce. There is no point to a marriage when we can't have a future." David said with a deep sigh.

"What do you mean we can't have a future? We can go to counselling-"

"No. Counselling won't help us. I received the results from the fertility experts we saw. They've confirmed that we can't have children."

The news stunned her.

"W-who…"

David sighed, refusing to look at her.

"You can't have my child, Liz."

"Lizzy? Are you even listening to me?"

Her mother's voice brought her back to the present, only realising that her hand and wrist were wet as she looked down at the glass in her hand that was pouring water over the rim. Turning off the tap and setting the glass down, she grabbed the tea towel and dried her hand, turning back to face her mother.

"Sorry. What were you saying mum?" Elizabeth asked.

Her mother made that tutting sound that Elizabeth had always hated.

"I was asking you why you and David hadn't even mentioned having a child? I was saying that by now I thought you would have given your father and I a grandchild." Fran said with annoyance.

Elizabeth could feel her heart beating quicker in her chest, she felt as if an invisible rope was squeezing around it and felt a little sick in her stomach. The dread, the hurt, the anger that she couldn't have her own child was threatening to rush out of her.

"You have a grandchild. Two actually." She reminded her mother through gritted teeth.

"Oh yes. Two grandchildren born out of wedlock. Jane couldn't even be bothered to get George down the aisle. Perhaps if she had he wouldn't have left so easily and forgotten his duties as a father. You never know, maybe one day they'll find a cure for Lucy's little problems."

Elizabeth threw the tea towel at her mother so angrily that it hit her mother in the eye.

"OUCH!" her mother shrieked.

"You have no frigging clue about anything do you?! Lucy's 'little problems' don't need to fixed. It's not her fault or Jane's or Peter's that Lucy is missing tiny pieces of DNA in her chromosomes that have caused her brain and body to act differently to other people's. She's a lovely little girl if you actually bothered to see past her challenges. But just because she's different you don't want to get to know your granddaughter. And George was hardly the model father when he and Jane were together. It was Jane who had to do all the night feeds and nappy changes and hospital visits with Lucy and potty training Peter in those first two years. George couldn't handle and didn't want a disabled child. Jane is doing her damned best to bring up the twins by herself so give her some bloody respect and help. And as for me, well, I know I'm a big disappointment for you. Do you really want to know why my marriage ended? It wasn't for lack of trying. But my marriage was one sided. It was always about David, never about me. And we struggled for two years to conceive a child before we went to see a fertility expert who confirmed that I couldn't have children and that was enough reason for David to divorce me!" Elizabeth shouted.

Her mother stared at her, evidently stunned. The tea towel lay forgotten about on the floor as did any little pain her mother felt in her eye where the tea towel had hit her. Elizabeth felt her heart pounding even faster now, the blood rushing throughout her body, her hands were shaking. Neither mother or daughter said anything to each other, the only sound was the ticking of the kitchen clock on the wall. After a few minutes had passed, Thomas entered the kitchen with a concerned look on his face.

"What's going on?" her father questioned.

Elizabeth was the first to recover.

"Nothing. I have to get back to work." She answered quickly.

She made to leave the kitchen, only to have her upper arm grasped by her father's hand.

"Lizzy-"

"Dad. Please. Leave me be."

Pulling her arm out of her dad's grasp, she stormed out of the kitchen and grabbed her bag and keys, hearing the volcanic argument start as the door slammed behind her.

ooOoo

Jane sat opposite Charles in the bakery office, trying not to fall off her chair as she waited nervously for Charles to say something. Anything. She had just given him an insight, a minor one, into why she didn't date or why she didn't go out much and she knew that it was a lot to take in.

"So…" Charles began, clearing his throat.

"So…." Jane repeated, her heart beating fast.

She knew it was a lot to take it, after all it was her everyday life. But the only way she could envision Charles having a part of her life would be to tell him about Lucy.

"The reason you don't have a life isn't just because you're a single mum. You're a single mum to twins, one of which has a disability?" Charles questioned, making eye contact with her.

Jane nodded.

"Yes." She confirmed.

"Wow. Tell me more about Lucy."

She wasn't expecting that. She had been expecting him to say that it was too much to handle and bolt out the door.

"When the twins were born, it was obvious just how different they were. Lucy didn't sleep much, she had seizures, she didn't meet milestones that Peter did. Everything that a baby should learn, Peter did first and Lucy did it much later. She didn't sit up until she was a year old and didn't crawl until eighteen months old. She never copied sounds, she couldn't clap, point, speak. When she was two she was referred to many specialists who deal with development delays and part of that was blood testing. The results came back that she had a rare chromosome deletion which means she's missing a tiny portion of DNA in her chromosome and it affects how her genes work. It has caused her epilepsy, her delays, her sleep problem, and they assume it's the reason why she has now been given her autism diagnosis." Jane explained.

Charles nodded, not taking his eyes off her and indicated that he wanted to know more.

"She needs structure, routine, familiarity. She is a challenge, she only learned to walk a year ago and still uses a pushchair when we go out somewhere. She uses picture cards and Makaton sign language to communicate as she can't speak. And for two years all she has ever known is it being just the three of us, my dad and sister pitching in where they could. She's now used to her nurses that come during the night to give me a break and she's going to go to a respite centre in the summer so I can have some time with Peter. She doesn't know you, she doesn't do crowds or loud noises so that's the reason why we won't be able to come on Saturday. Hell, she has only recently started allowing Elizabeth to do things with her. I just don't want to put my daughter in a stressful situation. I'm sorry."

"Jane, never apologise for your child. I understand why you can't come." Charles said quickly.

"I understand if this is too much for you to handle. But if I want you and you want to be in my life, then you needed to know why sooner rather than later. My life is not rosy and it's not easy. My children are my priority." Jane said firmly.

Charles nodded, as if taking in what she was saying once again and for several minutes the only sound that she could hear was the clock ticking on the wall and the sound of her staff moving about the kitchen and the front of the bakery as they dealt with fresh pastries and serving customers. Jane could feel her heart beating nervously against her chest until he finally looked at her and gave her a small smile.

"I'm not saying this isn't a lot to take in, it is. But it doesn't change the fact that I want to get to know you." He said warmly.

Jane couldn't stop herself from grinning like a Cheshire cat.

"You do?" she questioned, her heart filling with hope.

Her stomach was doing somersaults with glee in her stomach and the butterflies were making her feel giddy. For the first time since she had met Charles, her insecurities regarding whether or not to trust a man and let a man into her life and that of her children's had gone to the back of her mind. All she cared about in that moment was gaining Charles' word that he wasn't going anywhere.

"I do." Charles confirmed.

"Because if you want to know me then you need to understand completely that I come with my children, I won't give them up for anything and they will always come first." Jane reiterated.

"I do understand. Jane, I'm not going anywhere. We can take this friendship at your pace."

Standing up from their chairs, they hugged each other tightly, with Jane hoping that she would have the strength to trust him more than she had ever trusted George.

ooOoo

The school bell rang and a flood of children of different ages and heights ran out one-by-one as the teacher called their names to indicate their parents were there to collect them. Elizabeth waited outside with the other adults, placing the thin strap to her t-shirt back on her shoulder as it began to fall down her upper arm. She could feel the sun scorching the back of her neck, wishing that she could just fast forward to tomorrow morning and put this day behind her. But she still had to look after Mia and then she prayed that once her workday was finished she could go home, have a bath and avoid her parents for the rest of the evening. She wasn't ready to go into more detail about her infertility and the problems it caused for David.

Eventually all the children from Mia's class had been handed over to their parents whilst Mia's teacher Mr. Moore, a tall man with greying hair and glasses that magnified his eyes, gestured for her to enter the school building. As soon as she stepped in the building, she saw the look of concern on the teacher's face and instantly knew that they would be having a conversation that didn't express Mia's good behaviour.

"Is something wrong?" Elizabeth questioned.

"Mia will be along in a moment. I know that Mr. Darcy has entrusted you to care for her so I thought I would speak with you and then Mr. Darcy this evening. Have there been any changes at home for Mia?" Mr. Moore asked.

Elizabeth shook her head.

"No. It's been the same as always as far as I'm aware. I feel we've bonded quite well in the eight weeks I've been in Mr. Darcy's employ." She replied.

Mr. Moore frowned.

"Over the last week we've noticed a change in Mia's behaviour. She's usually a well behaved child. She's very bright and positive. She's kind and thoughtful. However, over the last week we've noticed that she refuses to engage in guided reading or any group work with members of staff. She's 'forgotten' her homework too. Today she hasn't really wanted to participate in class discussions and whenever I've asked for her input to answer a question she's merely shrugged her shoulders and refused to make eye contact." The teacher said, his voice full of concern.

This was a complete different child that Mr. Moore was describing compared to the one she had gotten to know over the last eight weeks. Mia was always completing her homework and talking about her participation during the school day. As far as Elizabeth knew, there hadn't been any changes to Mia's home life that would have affected her this way.

"Has Mia complained of any incidences of bullying?" Elizabeth queried.

Mr. Moore shook his head.

"I've spoken with Mia's friends and they've confirmed that nobody has been nasty to Mia. Nor has Mia claimed to being bullied."

"Well…I guess I can try and gently approach the subject with her before her father finishes work. But I will speak with Mr. Darcy this evening and see if he can get to the bottom of it."

As the conversation ended, Mia entered the reception area and greeted Elizabeth with a small smile which caused Elizabeth to frown. Mia usually greeted her with more enthusiasm and more energy. But now, Mia looked exhausted and withdrawn, the complete opposite to the chatty child she had dropped off at school this morning. The two said their goodbyes to Mr. Moore and left the school, starting their walk to the community centre for Mia's trampolining class.

"Lizzy, I don't want to go trampolining today." Mia said quietly.

"Are you alright?" Elizabeth asked with a frown.

Mia nodded lazily.

"I just don't feel like it today."

"Are you sure? You like trampolining."

Mia nodded lazily once more, saying nothing as they carried on walking under the hot sun. In a few minutes of silence that followed, Elizabeth studied Mia as closely as she could. It was apparent that something was bothering her charge, due to the change in behaviour and spirit and her reluctance to participate in an activity that she had chosen and usually enjoyed.

"Mia, I hope you know that you can talk to me about anything." Elizabeth said reassuringly.

"I know." Mia said simply.

"Your teacher said that you've been out of sorts. Are you alright?"

Mia shrugged her shoulders and carried on walking, clearly preferring to remain as silent as she could.

"Mia?" Elizabeth pressed hard.

"I don't want to talk about it." Mia insisted.

"Mia, if something is wrong then you need to be brave and talk to me. I want to help but I can't if I don't know what's wrong."

"I'm just tired."

They crossed over the quiet road, with Mia running ahead to knock on the front door to the Darcy's house. Alice opened the front door and barely got to ask Mia how her day had gone as the little girl rushed up the stairs and into her bedroom.

"Is everything alright?" Alice asked with a frown.

Elizabeth sighed heavily.

"Her teacher has expressed concern. Over the past week Mia has refused to engage or participate during school hours." She replied.

"Oh dear. That's unusual for Mia, this is the first time they've ever expressed concern for her. Have they spoken to William yet?"

"Mr. Moore said that he would speak with him, I guess I can touch base with him once Mia goes to bed."

"Good idea. Are you staying for dinner tonight, Lizzy? I've got a shepherd's pie cooking."

It was a usual ritual, eating dinner with the family and tonight it was more welcome than it usually was. The thought of going home to face more questions from her mother and now her father, she wanted to prolong her return home tonight for as long as she possibly could. Nodding her head and smiling at Alice with gratitude, Elizabeth ascended the stairs to sit with Mia for a little while.

ooOoo

After dinner and her employer's request to sort Mia out for bed, Will sat down in his study and switched on his computer. The day had taken its toll on him, demanding clients who wanted his firm to sort out their mistakes without landing them in too much hot water, a phone call from Mia's teacher spouting about concerns about Mia's behaviour in school and on top of that he had Richard texting him asking if Elizabeth still had his number and he hadn't received a call from her yet. The last thing he needed was to persuade Elizabeth to give his cousin a chance and the last thing he wanted was to see Elizabeth in Richard's arms when he wanted to do that himself.

As he typed in the password to logon, there was a light rapping of knuckles against the open door to the study. He looked up through tired eyes and instantly smiled as he saw Elizabeth leaning against the door frame. Her wavy brown locks were loose today, falling down her back just past her shoulders. Her legs were on show, she wore a pair of denim shorts that showed off the curves of her thighs and backside. She was smiling at him awkwardly, her green eyes showing that she too was tired after a long day.

"Did you get the chance to speak with Mia's teacher?" Elizabeth asked.

It was clear that this was the first time she had ever brought up the subject of a child having trouble at school and she was unsure of how to sort the subject out.

"I did," Will confirmed, "I'm taking tomorrow off to have a meeting with Mr. Moore about it. It could just be that she only has two weeks before the summer holidays start and she's getting a bit fed up."

"Has she acted this way before?" Elizabeth asked.

Will shook his head. Hearing his daughter's teacher express concerns about his child surprised him. Mia was a good girl, it was very rare for her to act out. Even when she was upset she didn't usually shut people out, she usually sought comfort and reassurance from a loved one.

"I've tried talking to her about it and she insists that she's fine. I'll see how she is for the next two weeks and keep a close watch over her during the summer holidays and try and work out a pattern." Will replied.

"I know I don't know her as well as you do, but I'm worried something is bothering her. The child I've come to know the last eight weeks is different to the one I've seen today. Something is definitely wrong." Elizabeth sighed.

Will rose from his chair and walked around to the other side of his desk, leaning back against it. She continued to stand against the doorframe, her arms were now folded across her chest. All he wanted in that moment was to take the two steps that stood between them and press her up against that doorframe and kiss her. He wanted her body wrapped around his as he kissed her hotly, that long neck that he wanted to taste, those green eyes looking at him with want and need. He wanted to run his fingers through that soft looking hair. He wanted to make her his. But he couldn't. And it took that little voice in the back of his head reminding him of what his father had told him weeks ago to stop him from acting on his desires.

"I'll have another talk with her in the morning and see what I can do. I'm hoping this just a phase and she'll be alright. How did your meeting go with your solicitor?"

Elizabeth sighed and shrugged her shoulders.

"I've accepted the money that David is offering but I don't want any of it. So, I've decided to give it to my niece and nephew for their futures."

His eyes widened in surprise.

"Wow…that's generous…does your sister know?" Will asked.

"Not yet. It's been a long day. I'll tell her next time I see her, I haven't even received the money yet so Jane has time to object if she wishes to." Elizabeth replied.

"That's a really nice thing for you to do." Will commented admirably, smiling warmly at her.

She blushed slightly and looked away briefly before meeting his gaze again. Her feet shuffled as if she were nervous or something.

"I want to do it. They need it far more than I do and it's not like I have children of my own to see their futures are secure. At least this money will pay for Lucy's adult care if she needs it or Peter's university if he chooses to get a degree." Elizabeth mumbled.

"You care a lot for them don't you? I've seen how much you care for Mia and I never thought it was possible to have someone care for my child like she was their own." Will said.

He noticed the pained expression on her face but it quickly faded before he could ask if she was okay.

"Anyway…I wanted to thank you for the time off today to attend the meeting. My solicitor charges a lot for weekend meetings." Elizabeth said gratefully.

"It's no problem. Anything I can do to help and of course, I will be paying you for the time off."

"Oh no you can't do that."

"I can."

"But it was a personal errand-"

"And if I want to pay you for a full day even if you had to do a personal errand than I will."

"I don't want a full day of pay when I haven't done a full day." Elizabeth argued.

"And I don't want to keep arguing about this. I choose to pay you for a full day and that's it." Will argued back.

"I'm not some money grabber you know, I'm not going to take a full day of pay when I've had to do something personal during my work hours!" Elizabeth shot at him.

"You don't have to prove yourself to anyone you know. You are good at your job and you're a remarkable person, Elizabeth. Take the gesture. Save the money for your own place and carry on doing an amazing job with my child. Carry on with your strength and determination to craft your own chapter in life." Will said softly, rubbing his eyes.

Elizabeth's face softened slightly after their debate regarding money.

"This is new…for me…" she mumbled.

"Having a generous boss?" Will joked.

"Well that…I meant working for someone full time and having a relationship the way we do…during my marriage I didn't get to have these experiences." She clarified.

"If it helps…this is new for me to. For so long, it was me, Mia and Alice. Alice has always looked after us since my wife died so having a childminder who I have come to enjoy spending time with and trust with my child is new to me." Will responded.

He didn't know what to do when she stepped between them and hugged him briefly before thanking him in a whisper. The softness of her voice in his ear sent a sensitive tingle down his neck before she stepped away, bidding him goodnight.

"Elizabeth?" he called.

She turned in the doorway, looking back at him through curious green eyes.

"Yes?" Elizabeth answered.

"I've been invited to a friend's barbecue on Saturday to celebrate his housewarming. Would you like to come with us?"

Nodding her head, Elizabeth smiled and left the room. Will heard her footsteps continue down the stairs and heard the goodbye she said to Alice before shutting the front door behind her. Letting out a sigh, wondering just what he was going to do about his daughter's troubles and his growing feelings for a woman he shouldn't have them for.

ooOoo

Elizabeth closed the front door behind her quietly, leaning back against it she closed her eyes for a few seconds and inhaled deeply. The day was coming to a close and it had been one of her most stressful since her split from David. All she wanted was to run herself a bath and then jump into bed and sleep. But a low cough in front of her made her open her eyes and the image of peace went out of her mind.

"How was your day?" her father asked quietly.

"Stressful. Yours?" Elizabeth replied with a defeated sigh.

Her father shrugged, he too had a look of stress upon his face.

"Your mother has gone to stay with your Uncle Ed for a few days." Thomas informed her.

Elizabeth nodded, taking note of the awkwardness between her and her father. She knew that he wanted to discuss what he had overheard when she and her mother had been arguing this afternoon but she wasn't ready to mourn with her family about her infertility. She wasn't ready to open up and discuss the two years of trying, the invasive tests, the experts who informed David she wouldn't be able to have his child. She wasn't ready to discuss the last few days of her marriage before David pulled out the divorce statement to her. All she wanted was to put this day behind her and start again tomorrow morning.

"Well I suppose we'll both have a few days of peace without her shrieking the house down." Elizabeth joked.

Her father chuckled lightly and twiddled his thumbs, making eye contact with her.

"Well…I should get to bed…work tomorrow…" Elizabeth mumbled.

Her father nodded but just as she was about to climb the stairs to head to the bathroom, her father pulled her in for a tight hug, squeezing her tightly that she found it difficult to breath at a regular pace.

"Dad…tight…"

"Lizzy, I hope you know that I love you no matter what." Thomas whispered.

Elizabeth wrapped her arms around her dad's shoulders and hugged into him, feeling as if a weight had been slightly lifted from her. In that moment Elizabeth knew that Thomas understood that the subject was hers to talk about in her own time, that she had to come to terms with it before sharing her struggles with her family. Without going into the subject, Thomas was telling her in his own words that it didn't matter to him if she couldn't give him a grandchild, that her infertility wasn't a condition for his love and acceptance of her. And in that moment, Elizabeth shed a few tears on her father's shoulder after bottling up the grief of a dream she once had that had now shattered; feeling for the first time in weeks that she would be okay in the end.


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N:** Here is the next chapter I hope you lovelies haven't been waiting too impatiently. The plan is to still update when I can, hopefully within the month if time can be on my side for a change. I hope you all enjoy this one :)

 **Chapter Twelve**

Saturday had proven to be ideal weather for a barbecue in July. There wasn't a cloud in sight in the bright light blue sky and the sun was stretching its rays wide and emitting a scorching heat. Perfect weather for a barbecue. But for William Darcy, he knew that the afternoon round his best friend's house to celebrate a housewarming was going to be an eventful afternoon.

He pressed the back of his hand to his daughter's head, feeling the heat instantly the moment his skin touched hers. Mia whimpered, shifting uncomfortably underneath the thin blanket she lay under and opened her brown eyes to stare up at him.

"A nice easy day for you." Will sighed.

Mia nodded in agreement, not saying a word. He had put down Mia's strange behaviour at home and school to an illness as it was now apparent that his daughter was ill. He knew it was probably viral, not a lot the doctors could do for a viral infection except tell him what he already knew. Mia needed rest and fluids. Not a barbecue in scorching heat.

"I'll keep an eye on her William. You go and enjoy yourself." Alice encouraged.

"You don't think I should stay here and care for her?" Will asked, looking back at his housekeeper.

"Elizabeth will be here shortly, and you can go and spend some time with Charles for a few hours. Mia will be fine with me; she just needs to rest until this virus gets out of her system. Go. I'll call you with updates if you wish." Alice replied.

Looking back at his daughter he gave Mia a small smile.

"Do you want me to go to Uncle Charlie's? Or do you want me to stay here with you?" he asked softly.

"Uncle Charlie's." Mia whispered, closing her eyes.

"If you want me to come home, Alice will call me."

Mia merely nodded sleepily, and Will got up from the bed and left the bedroom with Alice, closing the door behind them slightly. As they walked downstairs, they didn't hear the bedroom door open nor did they hear the tiptoes across the upstairs hallway, and nor did they hear Mia place Alice's hairdryer back in its rightful place in the bedroom. Nor did they hear Mia creep back into her bed.

"Are you sure it's fine for me to go?" Will asked.

Alice smiled and nodded her head.

"Go. Have some fun with Elizabeth and celebrate your friend settling down in his first home. Your father is going I imagine?"

Will nodded.

"And Georgie. I hope they don't ask many questions about Elizabeth."

"Are you afraid that they will disapprove?" Alice questioned.

He nodded again.

"My father warned me that it could get messy if Elizabeth and I evolved our existing relationship. And I haven't. And I won't." Will answered.

"But you can't help your feelings, Fitzwilliam. It wouldn't be a bad thing for you to get involved with Elizabeth." Alice reassured him.

"But it would. Against my better judgement I have feelings for my childminder! If I told her how I felt everything would be ruined. Her bond with Mia would be jeopardised, she wouldn't want to work for me any longer. Besides, she isn't ready for me to tell her how I feel, she isn't even ready to date because she is another man's wife who is currently getting divorced. I wouldn't want her to jump into a relationship that she isn't ready for. I won't risk the happy dynamic we all currently have just because of my feelings." Will ranted.

"I can understand that there are many factors which are telling you it would be a bad idea. But think of the good aspects of it. She loves your daughter more than anyone else doing her job would have cared for Mia. She is getting divorced which means that she isn't betraying any marriage vows and you helped to give her a purpose – she said so herself. Once she heals from her divorce and puts a firm end on that chapter of her life, she may well be open to something new." Alice reasoned.

"I think it's best that my feelings stay buried. I don't want to risk my friendship or working relationship with Elizabeth." Will said firmly.

Alice nodded sadly but gave him a knowing smile. It was the smile that Will knew quite well. It was the smile that she used when he and Georgie had been causing mischief at Pemberley and she knew that they were behind said mischief, even when they denied any wrongdoing. It was the smile that Alice used when he was being stubborn about something and she knew what was coming to pass. He couldn't help himself by smiling back at his housekeeper who had come to know him so well over the past three decades that she was like a second mother.

The front door knocked and as Alice headed back to the kitchen, Will opened the front door to see Elizabeth standing in the doorway. She was dressed in a floaty blue dress with thin straps on the shoulder and it fell to her knees, she wore a pair of black flip flops and her brown wavy locks flowed down her shoulders and back, longer than he seemed to remember. Her make-up was minimal, not that she needed it, and her skin tone was darker than when he had first met her. Summer was here and Elizabeth seemed to be enjoying it.

"Hello." Will said with a smile.

"Hey. Am I properly dressed for a barbecue, housewarming party?" Elizabeth asked, her tone unsure.

"You look amazing." Will breathed.

Their eyes met for a moment, locked in a warm gaze. It took every ounce of self-control he had to not pull her towards him and whisper his feelings for her. But he couldn't.

As the two called their goodbyes to Alice and set off into the afternoon on the short walk to Charles' house, little did Will know where the rest of the day would take him.

ooOoo

Arriving at Charles' house, Elizabeth already had a feeling that the afternoon would be an eventful one. The moment that Charles had answered the front door to her and Will he had already asked if he could get Jane's address from her. Elizabeth had text her sister to ask her permission and moved around the crowd gathered outside in the garden. She had chosen a seat that was empty at the far back of the garden as she waited for Will to get them both a drink from the house. Just as she received Jane's reply, a woman sat down next to her.

"Hello, I just thought I'd come over and introduce myself," the woman said pleasantly, tucking a strand of red hair behind her ear, "My name is Caroline, I'm Charles' sister."

Elizabeth shook the woman's hand and replied with her name. The woman resembled Charles in looks, they shared the same red hair, had the same shade of blue in their eyes and the same nose. The only thing that Elizabeth could visibly notice that was different between the siblings was that Caroline's eyes were slightly narrower in shape which made it seem like Caroline was giving her the evils.

"I'm staying with Charles whilst I get my new career off the ground. How do you know my brother?" Caroline questioned curiously.

"I met him through a friend, Will Darcy?" Elizabeth answered.

"Oh, you know Fitzwilliam Darcy. Did he bring his daughter with him today?"

Elizabeth shook her head.

"No, she's unwell."

"Oh, that's a shame. Sadly, there are nasty germs going around schools these days." Caroline commented.

Elizabeth nodded as she scanned through the crowd and saw Will talking with his father and sister. But her eyes widened as someone approached her. Someone who was still waiting for her to call him back.

Richard.

"Hello Elizabeth, my cousin didn't say you were attending Bingley's barbecue." Richard greeted brightly.

"Nice to see you again, Richard." Elizabeth said politely.

"Ah yes," Caroline chipped in, "Always happy to have you, Richard."

Elizabeth watched as Caroline stood up from her seat and gave Richard a quick hug before making her way over to greet the rest of Will's family. Richard, eyeing up the empty seat the Caroline had just vacated, sat next to her as Elizabeth was replying to her sister's text message.

"So…I still haven't heard from you." Richard mused quietly, looking at her intently.

"Yeah…sorry but I've been busy." Elizabeth replied, her attention on texting Jane back.

"Too busy to grab a dinner with me?" Richard pressed.

Elizabeth tucked her phone back into the tiny clutch bag she had brought with her and turned to face Richard. The look on his face told her that he wasn't going to give up easily.

"I'm flattered that you're interested in asking me out but I'm not in a position to date right now. I've just got out of a marriage and I need to spend a bit of time on my own before I consider dinner with anyone." Elizabeth said gently.

"Easy love, I only asked you out to dinner, not to elope with me." Richard said defensively.

"Even so, I'm not looking for a dinner or anything with anyone at the moment."

She watched as Richard moved from his seat and hurried off over to where Will stood chatting with his father and smiled as Georgiana joined her in the seat that her cousin sat moments ago.

"How have you been?" Georgiana asked brightly.

"I've been busy, how about you?" Elizabeth asked.

"I've been volunteering at a local library whilst I fill out job applications. Dad wants me out in the world of work now I've graduated." Georgiana replied.

"What work areas are you interested in?"

"Well I am interested in pursuing a teaching qualification now I have my bachelor's degree in English literature. For now, I'm mostly looking at summer jobs whilst I wait to hear back from universities about this teaching qualification."

"How about summer playschemes? They're related to working with children and it will give you a few weeks of experience over the summer holidays before you start the teaching qualification." Elizabeth suggested.

"That's a great idea," Georgiana smiled, "How would you start going about it? Are there any specific websites I can research through? Google comes up with thousands of ideas."

Elizabeth drove deeper into conversation with Georgiana about how to gain experience working with children, she didn't notice when Reginald moved away from his son and go to greet other guests he knew. She gladly talked with Georgiana, both taking it in turns to fill up their wine glasses as they continued their conversation which had started off with Elizabeth's suggestions which turned to Georgiana's experience with university which moved on to Elizabeth's degree and experience with Mia. The conversation with Georgiana made Elizabeth feel like she was making more connections in the Darcy family and she hoped that she could call Georgiana a friend soon just as much as she considered Will to be her friend. Just as she was asking Georgiana if she would like to accompany her and Mia on a few days out over the summer holidays, they were interrupted by Caroline.

"The summer holidays are frightfully long, wouldn't you agree? Children must get so bored." Caroline commented, dragging a chair to sit beside Georgiana.

"Well they are long. But you can't expect children to carry on learning during hot weather, it's bad enough that they must sit in a stuffy classroom for six hours a day during June and half of July. Six weeks of holiday to relax, have fun and spend time with your family recharges a child ready to go back to school in September." Elizabeth disagreed.

"I've recently started working as a teaching assistant, a lot of the teachers at the school I work at believe that that children should have a shorter summer holiday." Caroline argued.

"People can have their own opinion on the subject. Personally, I think you must keep kids occupied for most of the holiday, so you all get through it easier. However, six weeks is a good time to connect as a family." Elizabeth replied.

"I suppose you have a child?" Caroline questioned.

She didn't know why it would sting so much coming from a stranger. It hurt enough when her mother had been ranting about her giving her parents a grandchild before she exploded and let out the reason why her marriage had ended. She knew that she couldn't be rude to Charles' sister, after all she was a guest here. Instead, she took a breath and shook her head.

"Actually, I'm a childminder and I look after Mia Darcy." Elizabeth answered politely.

"Oh, I see. Mia is such a delightful child, a credit to her father." Caroline chirped.

"She is." Georgiana agreed quietly, taking a sip of her wine.

"Such a sad story. Poor little girl never knowing her mother and such a tragic way for poor Natalie to die." Caroline sighed.

Elizabeth detected a hint of a gossipy voice in Caroline's sigh and frowned.

"Just because Mia was so young when her mother passed away doesn't mean she didn't have a connection or relationship with her mother." She pointed out.

"Of course, Eliza, I wasn't suggesting such a thing! I merely meant that a young girl needs a mother in her life and poor Darcy hasn't been able to make a relationship stick."

"Maybe because he wanted his priority to be his child? Maybe because he wanted to honour his wife's memory?"

"Can I just say that my brother's personal relationships are private to him? You don't know if he's seeing anyone, Caroline." Georgiana interrupted.

"Not so private, Georgiana dear. Not long after poor Natalie died, Darcy and I were together. But it never amounted to anything because I respected that his child wasn't ready for me to step into that role, no matter how much we both wanted it." Caroline whispered.

Elizabeth felt a knot in her stomach, her heart racing with jealousy. Surely Will had better taste in women than a woman who liked to gossip and argue?

But then again, he had told her that he had dated someone for three months, but it never developed into something serious? Was Caroline the woman he had been talking about? Had he wanted to have a serious relationship with Caroline but hadn't out of fear for his daughter?

Before she could even think and move on from it, Caroline had got up from her seat and glided away back through the crowd of guests in the garden. As she stared at Georgiana, she noticed the younger woman smiling kindly at her.

"I wouldn't read too much into it. Will is extremely private about his love life, he hasn't introduced anyone to us since Natalie died. The exception being you."

Elizabeth frowned in confusion.

"I'm the first woman he's introduced to you and your father since his wife died?" she asked for clarification.

Georgiana nodded, taking another sip of her wine.

"Yes. You are the first woman he's introduced to us since Natalie died."

As Elizabeth took another sip of her drink, her eyes fell on Will who was chatting with Charles and smiled. She didn't notice the flutter in her stomach as his gaze briefly fell on her and returned her smile with a warm one of his own.

ooOoo

He could feel the sun burning the back of his neck and his silently chastised himself for not putting on any sun cream before he had left the house. All he had wanted since arriving for the barbecue and had finished chatting to his friend was to sit with Elizabeth and feel comfortable. But his father had stopped him and had quizzed him even more about why he had invited Elizabeth to this barbecue and if things had happened between them to which he had told his father to mind his own business. It hadn't helped that Richard had tagged along and was now watching him like a hawk.

He knew that his cousin had an increased interest in the woman he also had feelings for, but he didn't want to see her get involved with his cousin. Anyone but Richard. It wasn't that he disliked his cousin, they had been close when they were boys, but he knew his cousin's usual game with women. Richard didn't do long-term relationships, his longest had lasted just under a year and even that relationship had no commitment. Richard was only interested in one thing and didn't necessarily take a woman's feelings into account no matter how long his relationship with that woman lasted. He could treat a woman coldly and hurt them deeply. He believed that Elizabeth deserved better than that – when she was ready for another relationship that is.

Throughout the time they had been apart he had seen her talk to his cousin and have a lengthy conversation with his sister before Caroline joined them. He could see that it had been an unwelcome intrusion where Caroline was concerned and whatever his best friend's sister had said, Elizabeth was evidently irritated by her. But now, he found himself stood watching her, smiling at her as his gaze met hers. She smiled back, standing from her seat and begun to walk over to him. Will grabbed them both a paper plate from the side table and when she reached him, he handed her one and the two joined the queue to help themselves to salad, burgers, kebabs, hotdogs, chips, breadsticks, fruit and a whole lot of other foods that Charles had added for his guests to enjoy. Once their plates were filled, they took two empty chairs at the side of the garden and sat down, eating and chatting about anything that filled their heads.

Once the food had been consumed, he and Elizabeth helped themselves to another drink as another of Charles's guests turned up the music and another two held up a pole and encouraged the guests to limbo underneath it. There were several laughs filling the air along with the music as Elizabeth placed her glass of wine underneath her chair and stood up, taking his hand in hers and pulling him to his feet.

"What are we doing?" Will asked, confused.

Elizabeth grinned at him.

"We're joining in." she replied, gesturing towards the line for the limbo.

He laughed nervously, hoping that she was joking.

"I haven't done this before."

Elizabeth shrugged, still grinning at him.

"And you've had a few drinks and we're having fun. Mia would want you to have fun."

Before he could protest or even think about how he was going to crouch under a large pole that gave a shorter distance to the ground and smaller space to move under, Elizabeth had dragged him to the line and were waiting for their turn. The queue got shorter and shorter until he watched as Elizabeth took her turn, only just managing to get to the other side of the pole. People cheered as she moved out of the way to watch him take his turn; only for Richard to push ahead of him and take a turn, successfully crouching and walking under the pole whilst holding a bottle of beer.

"Your turn cos!" Richard called, slightly slurring his words, taking a large swig from his beer.

Will stepped up to the line and began his turn, his knees bending as he slowly stomped his way through the gap, his body moving lower and lower until his chin was level with the pole. He didn't notice Richard drop his bottle underneath the pole, he didn't hear the smash of glass as he tried to make his way underneath the pole. His leg cramped and Will gasped as the sharp pain shot up his leg, making him fall backwards, his hand landing on a shard of glass from his cousin's broken beer bottle.

ooOoo

His hand was hurting, he could feel his pulse throughout his hand as Elizabeth pulled a tiny glass shard out of the cut. The cut wasn't too big or too deep, fortunately, but it still hurt a lot and even more so when Elizabeth pressed a disinfectant wipe to it to clean the little wound. Will winced, letting out a curse word in a small whisper which caused Elizabeth to smile sympathetically.

"You can go back outside if you want, I can clean myself up." Will offered quietly.

She shook her head, continuing to dab the wipe gently across his hand.

"I don't particularly want to keep avoiding your cousin when I'm surrounded by other people. At least with me attending to you, I have a valid excuse." Elizabeth said with a sigh.

Will laughed a low chuckle as she placed the wipe on the kitchen counter and took a bandage out of the first aid kit and began to wrap it around his hand.

"Are you enjoying yourself at least?" he asked.

"I suppose. I'd rather be here than at home, let's put it that way." She replied.

"Parents?" Will guessed.

"My mother is coming home today after staying with my uncle and aunt for a few days. So, I'm dreading going home to questions and nosiness into the reason my marriage ended."

Will felt a yearning to cheer her up after a difficult week. She hadn't confided in him what the argument between her and her mother was about but the impression she gave him was that it had been a bad one and it had been about personal matters.

"Do you want to get out of here? We could go back to mine, check on Mia, watch a movie and open a bottle of wine?" he asked in a whisper.

"That sounds like something I need." Elizabeth replied with a relieved sigh.

"Wait for me here, I'll just say a few quick goodbyes and then we'll go."

Will headed back outside, spotting his father and sister and informed them of his departure.

Georgiana gave him a quick hug with promises to drop by soon and his father gave him a look of warning to which he assumed was about Elizabeth, but Will chose to ignore his father's concern. Just as he was about to grab Charles' attention and walk back to the house, Richard grabbed him by the arm and stopped him in his tracks.

"You off now cousin?" Richard whispered amusingly.

"Yes. Mia is unwell so I'm calling it a night." Will replied with annoyance.

"I didn't have you down as the type to use your daughter as your excuse when everyone here knows that you're going home with your employee. Can you imagine what Aunt Catherine would say?" Richard said with a laugh.

Will glared at his cousin. He didn't give a shit what his Aunt would have to say about anything. And he didn't particularly care what his cousin was trying to imply, he knew the truth. His feelings may be known to his father but nobody else at this barbecue knew that he had feelings for Elizabeth when he had barely had a chance to sit with her for most of the afternoon.

"What do you want, Richard?" Will asked with a hint of boredom.

"Uncle Reg expressed some concern to me about your childminder and asked me to deter her away from you. I'll admit I wasn't too keen to take on without meeting her but now, having met her, I have to say she's a million times better looking than I imagined." Richard replied, glancing at Elizabeth through the open back doors to the house, a thirsty look in his eyes.

Will felt the anger surging through him. He wanted nothing more than to pin Richard against the fence to get the message across that his cousin needed to stay away from Elizabeth. But he couldn't for several reasons. Instead he merely met his cousin's smug expression and glared at him.

"Leave Elizabeth alone. She's not interested in you." He said in a low growl.

"I'd rather hear it from her." Richard chuckled.

"Your intentions towards her are malicious. The only reason you want her is because my father can't keep his nose out of my life." Will hissed.

"He's trying to protect you, Fitz. Getting involved with an employee is messy." Richard said in a low voice, filled with a hint of concern.

A hint of concern that Will knew wasn't real. Ever since Richard had set his eyes on Elizabeth, he wanted her for himself. It wasn't just about helping his father out anymore for Richard.

"Thanks for your concern, cousin. But I think I'll be alright on my own."

Without saying another word or giving his cousin the opportunity, Will walked back into the house and gave his best friend a quick goodbye before heading off into the cool breezy evening with Elizabeth.

ooOoo

"It's been a rough and awkward week. I still haven't told my sister about my intentions with my divorce settlement and my mother and I have been avoiding each other since she got back yesterday." Elizabeth sighed heavily.

The two were sat on Will's sofa, only half an arm's length apart and both had a glass of wine in their hand. Will sat with comfortably, facing slightly sideways to face her with his other hand propped up on the backrest to support his head. As he observed her and listened to her troubling week, he noted how relaxed she seemed to be in his presence. As she offloaded to him about her troubles, he observed the way her mouth shaped the words she spoke, her full lips that taunted him whenever she said his name. He took another sip of his wine, continuing to listen to her. It was just the two of them. Alice had already headed up to bed and left a note for him to say that Mia was sound asleep, and her temperature had gone back to normal. Relieved that his daughter was alright, he had proceeded to open a bottle of wine and enjoy Elizabeth's company, the setting sun lighting the skies in a delightful pink and shade of deep purple outside the living room windows, basking the room in a pleasant glow which only made them relax even more.

"You still haven't said why your mum left in the first place? What was your argument about?" Will asked, taking another sip of his wine.

He watched as she took a large mouthful of wine before proceeding to pour herself another half glass. He knew she shouldn't, her father was going to be picking her up soon to take her home after an afternoon of a little alcohol consumption. For the first time since returning to his house, she looked really upset. Truly upset. As if she would burst into tears the moment she spoke aloud. Wishing that he could ease her pain, Will leaned over to the side table and placed his wine glass atop it before inching closer to Elizabeth and took hold of her hand.

"Elizabeth?" he whispered; his voice filled with worry.

She sniffled and didn't look round in response of him saying her name. Will watched as her eyes filled with tears, one falling freely down her cheek. Her chest was heaving, she was struggling to breathe until he placed a reassuring hand on her back and whispered to breathe slowly and deeply as he counted. After a few counts, she turned to face him.

"My marriage…he ended it…because…I can't…have…kids…" Elizabeth cried.

He felt his heart break for her. How could someone be so cruel to end their marriage based on the other's infertility? How could someone place blame on their spouse's shoulders because they couldn't conceive a child naturally? There were options available to Elizabeth and it seemed her husband didn't want to consider those options for whatever reason. Wrapping his arm around her shoulders, he pulled her into his chest, and she cried into him, her arms snaking around his waist and her head rested against his shoulder. Will held her tightly, his fingers stroking the top of her arm soothingly, wishing that he could take away her pain. Witnessing this side to her made him wish he could make her happy, wish that he could fix her problems and her pain.

They sat there for a while, not watching the clock hands move nor listening to the sound of the ticking. The sunset sky was growing to a lighter shade of navy, indicating the night was beginning as Elizabeth's phone buzzed, an unread text from her father stating he had just left the house and would be there to pick her up in ten minutes – he had to stop to fill up the car first. But Elizabeth didn't read the text message from her father. Both didn't know whether it was the wine or their mutual feelings of safety between the two of them, but they remained cuddled together as Elizabeth look up at him through red, puffy eyes.

"I'm sorry…it's been…a stressful week…and trying…to deal with…being broken and…not good enough…it just…" she mumbled, sniffing deeply.

"I wish I could take it all away, Elizabeth," Will said softly, "Your ex-husband didn't deserve you."

Elizabeth smiled weakly, looking away from him until he gently brought her face back to his.

"You're too good for him. You had to sacrifice everything to try and make that marriage work and got nothing in return. It doesn't make you broken or defective and there are other options to have a child. You're incredible, Elizabeth, I hope you can see how amazing you are one day, just as I see you."

It was like there was a magnetic charge between them which neither could explain. Neither thought nor could think about anything. Neither saw anything but the person in front of them. Will couldn't resist the need to lightly run his fingers through her silky, wavy locks. He took in a sharp breath as her fingers touched his cheek, her eyes studying his face more closely as if this were the first time that she was really seeing him. Neither cared that the alcohol they had consumed over the afternoon and early evening was affecting their judgement and their ability to control the situation. His forehead bumped lightly against hers, their noses touched. He could feel the hiked pace of her breathing, he could smell the wine that they had been sharing moments ago and just as they got as close as they could…

A sharp knock on the front door.

The two sprang apart, their hearts beating fast in their chests.

What had just nearly happened?

Before he could apologise or say anything to her she mumbled something about having a great day and thanking him as she gathered her things together and rushed out of the house. Will sat on the sofa, head in his hands as he silently cursed himself for nearly crossing the line he should never have ventured near.

ooOoo

"Owl ice-cream, goodbye little mouse. And off he flew to his treetop house. Silly old owl, doesn't he know? There's no such thing as a…"

"Gggggaaff." Lucy squealed.

"That's right my Lucy Goosey." Jane said, her voice filled with pride and excitement.

Peter was curled up on one side of Jane whilst Lucy was curled up into her on the other as she read The Gruffalo to them for their bedtime story. It was moments like this that made Jane tempted to cry with joy at just how much progress her daughter was making in her development. She had read The Gruffalo to her twins a million times over the years, Peter knew the words by heart now, but Lucy would just be happy to sit next to her and try to turn the pages. This was the first time that Lucy had started to make sounds that resembled her trying to speak. It didn't matter to her if her four-year-old daughter was only babbling; it was a step in the right direction to help her build it up to an eventual word.

She continued to read the story to the twins until the end of the book came and both looked up at her through tired eyes. Jane stood up and lifted Lucy into her arms and instructed Peter to walk in front of her up the stairs. She tucked them both in and said goodnight and went back downstairs to wait for the night nurse to show for Lucy's overnight care when there was a knock on the front door.

"You're early tonight J-"

But as she opened the door to her full view, she realised that it wasn't Jenny at the front door. Stood in front of her was the same brilliant smile and bright blue eyes that she often found herself thinking about. Along with Charles' kindness and willingness to place the ball in her court when it came to any decisions about their relationship.

"Charles, I wasn't…this is a nice surprise…" Jane stammered, feeling herself blush a little.

"Sorry, I know it's getting late and I won't keep you. But Elizabeth gave me your address-"

"I know. She texted me to clear it with me first. I didn't think you'd show up tonight though."

"Well I hope this doesn't make me seem a little stalkerish, but I had this made for Lucy this week." Charles said nervously, handing over a medium sized giftbag.

Jane took it from him with a reassuring smile and looked inside the giftbag, pulling out two items that made her speechless. The first item was a crocheted doll that she guessed was supposed to resemble Charles with orange hair and blue dots for eyes with what she determined was to resemble a smile. The other item was a little book with the title: 'Hello, I'm Charlie.'.

"Charles…this is…"

"This isn't my way of trying to move our friendship along or me attempting to pressure you into meeting your children. It's not. I just thought that it might be something for you to try so that your little girl could get used to the idea of me. I read that social stories can be a way to help a child with special needs prepare for a new situation." Charles explained.

This gesture might have been small for anyone else, but for Jane it was the nicest thing that a person outside her own family had ever done for her and her child. Charles was yet again giving her another reason why she should trust him. Surely, if he was willing to research strategies to help her child familiarise herself with a new situation, this would mean that she could trust him? That he wasn't going to bolt the minute that it got too difficult?

In that moment her insecurities faded, and she leaned forward and took his hand in hers and gave it a light squeeze. Her eyes filled with happy tears as he leaned into her, his forehead bumped lightly against her own as she muttered a thank you in a soft whisper. She felt herself leaning forwards some more, just as he was doing the same and their lips lightly touched in a soft kiss.


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N:** I know this chapter is a little shorter than the last two but I wanted to get this one finished. I'm currently on day 10 of homeschooling and day 12 for my eldest since his 1-1 had to isolate and his school couldn't guarantee his EHCP needs being met. In 10 days I have only left my house to walk to shop 5 minutes up the road and to put my bins out for the weekly collection. The UK has officially been in 'lockdown' for a week and it's hard. I had to celebrate my youngest's first birthday without seeing family who wanted to celebrate with us. And to top that all off my dad and his partner now have this frigging virus and I can't even see them. I know this is hard for everyone and I am praying for this virus to go away so life can return to normal as quickly as possible. I hope that this chapter finds you all safe and well as you can be, wherever you are in the world.

Apologies for the emotional stuff, I hope you enjoy this chapter. I hope to get another one posted soon.

 **Chapter Thirteen**

"God Jane, I'm so stupid!" Elizabeth groaned.

It was nearly ten o'clock the morning after Elizabeth's mishap with Will. Her head was throbbing as she took the glass of water that her sister offered her and placed the two tablets of paracetamol in her mouth. She took a large gulp of water and swallowed, silently hoping that the pain would ease soon.

"You had too much to drink to think straight? We've all been there." Jane said sympathetically.

"I broke down on my boss and sought comfort from him and in the process we nearly kissed. Talk about crossing the line!" Elizabeth groaned again.

The two sisters were sat in Jane's kitchen, with Lucy happily watching Peppa Pig on her tablet whilst occasionally eating the dried bowl of Cheerios next to her. The first thing Elizabeth had decided to do, after a much-needed lukewarm shower, was to seek her sister's advice. She had agreed to watch Lucy along with Lydia so Jane could have some one on one time with Peter.

"Why did you break down? What happened?" Jane asked visibly concerned.

She knew that she would have to tell Jane and Lydia eventually. Now that their parents knew why her marriage ended and now Will did too, her sisters needed to know.

Elizabeth took a deep inhale of breath before looking directly at her sister.

"The reason why David ended our marriage is because I can't have children, Jane. That's why I argued with Mum and she went to stay with Uncle Ed and why I broke down on Will." She said quietly.

Jane instantly leaned across the table and wrapped her arms tightly around Elizabeth's shoulders. Elizabeth returned her sister's supportive hug and after a few moments, they sat back down in their seats.

"I'm so sorry Lizzy. How are you doing?" Jane asked.

Elizabeth shrugged.

"It hurts. Knowing that I can't have children…it just feels like I've been robbed of something I never had…like a choice has been taken away from me…I tried to suggest going to counselling but David refused, he wanted a divorce." She sighed in reply.

"Had you been trying for long?" Jane asked quietly.

"Two- and a-bit years, beginning one year into our marriage. Then we took a little break before I suggested going for some tests with fertility experts. We kept trying…David needed some time to think it over…we eventually went, and he started becoming distant… when I confronted him he told me…" she trailed off, taking a deep breath to try and prevent herself getting worked up.

The last thing she wanted to do was cry in front of Peter and Lucy.

"It'll be okay, Lizzy." Jane whispered softly, reaching across the table to squeeze her hand.

Elizabeth smiled weakly and wiped away a stray tear.

"I know it will." She whispered back.

"Do you want to talk more about it?" Jane asked.

"Not now…when I'm ready to talk more…I'll come to you…" Elizabeth replied.

Jane nodded encouragingly and Elizabeth was grateful for the few moments of silence her sister gave her so she could compose herself before she got asked the dreaded question.

"So, do you fancy Will?" her sister asked with a smirk.

Elizabeth groaned again.

"Why? Why would I do that?" she scolded herself.

"Do you?" Jane pressed eagerly.

In truth, she would be a fool to deny that she found Will attractive. Those warm brown eyes that made her feel at ease, that smile – his infectious smile, that curly hair of his that made her wonder if it was as soft as Mia's and he looked good in a shirt; but it wasn't just his looks that she liked. He cared about her. It seemed like he cared about her. He offered to drive her home when she couldn't or didn't have her car yet. He did drive her home so that he knew she was safe after looking after his child all day. He showed concern when she could no longer keep it all together and cried on him last night.

She would be lying if she said that she didn't find him attractive. But she was his friend. His employee. And clearly the mixture of needing comfort after a very difficult period and alcohol consumed over the afternoon and evening had affected her judgement.

"He's definitely attractive…but I won't cross that line." Elizabeth muttered.

"Do you like him?"

"Of course, I do. He's my friend."

"Not what I meant, Lizzy." Jane said quietly.

"I can't…. get involved with him…. I don't want a relationship right now….I'm not even divorced yet!"

"You can't help who you like." Jane sighed happily.

Her sister's tone made her frown slightly. She watched as Jane zoned out of what they were talking about and followed her sister's gaze to a crochet doll that sat on the kitchen side. Looking back at her sister, Elizabeth raised an eyebrow.

"Charles?" Elizabeth questioned, taking her turn to smirk.

Jane flushed a light red.

"I…uh…I…"

"How are things between the two of you?" Elizabeth teased.

But before Elizabeth could interrogate her sister further, the front door to Jane's house opened and closed again, with the smell of bacon filling their nostrils as Lydia entered the kitchen with three paper bags.

"Okay, I bought three bacon butties." Lydia informed them.

Elizabeth and Jane took a bag each from Lydia before their youngest sister sat in the empty seat next to Elizabeth. Lucy was oblivious to the conversation, her attention totally on the next episode of Peppa Pig and her fingers dipping into her cereal. Just as the sisters took out their bacon butties, Peter came into the kitchen, still wearing his pyjamas and carrying his empty plate to the sink.

"Mummy, what are we doing today?" Peter asked, walking over to the crowded table.

"Well Aunty Lizzy and Aunty Lydia are looking after Lucy whilst you and I spend the afternoon together." Jane replied happily.

Peter's eyes lit up with excitement.

"Really mummy?" the little boy asked with a squeal.

Jane nodded.

"Yes, my love. Now, why don't you go and get dressed whilst I finish my breakfast?"

Peter happily ran out of the kitchen and up the stairs as Elizabeth looked at Jane with an eyebrow raised.

"Lydi, we need to quiz Jane about a certain red-headed man who she's dreamy about." Elizabeth informed her younger sister.

Lydia looked at Jane with the same facial expression as Elizabeth. It was one of many things that the three sisters had in common: their teasing facial expression. The raised eyebrows and the way their mouths twitched in amusement that they couldn't prevent from happening. Jane took a large bite of her bacon butty and met their gaze, her cheeks flushing once again.

"Janie do tell. Why is there a crochet doll of Charles sitting on your kitchen side?" Lydia teased.

"Do you like him?" Elizabeth sung.

Jane swallowed her food and smiled widely.

"Did something happen?" Lydia quizzed eagerly.

The bacon butties were held forgotten about in their hands as Jane nodded with a giggle. Elizabeth and Lydia squealed as Jane blushed like the red on a traffic light.

"Spill!"

"Tell us everything!"

It was as if Jane found it impossible to stop smiling.

"Well…after I put the twins to bed Charles came over last night…he had a gift made for Lucy…a crochet doll to look like him and a story to go with him so that Lucy could know who he was before he meets the twins…" Jane said happily.

"Aw that's really sweet." Elizabeth gushed.

"And there's more?" Lydia guessed.

Jane nodded.

"We…I…um…I kissed him…and he kissed me back…" she grinned.

"Oh Jane! That's great!" Elizabeth said happily.

"I know…I just…" Jane let out a relieved laugh, "He just keeps…giving me reasons to trust him…he really wants to be there for me…for us…"

It was really touching to hear Jane feel so happy for the first time in a long time. Ever since George had walked out on her and the twins, Elizabeth knew that Jane found it hard to let people in; especially when it came to letting someone bond with her children.

"So…did you invite him in?" Lydia quizzed curiously, taking a bite out of her butty.

"No…we kissed in the doorway for a bit until…uh…Jenny kind of interrupted us…" Jane answered embarrassed.

"I guess you momentarily forgot Lucy's night nurse was coming?" Elizabeth teased.

"A tad." Jane muttered with a smile.

"So, what happened next?" Lydia pressed.

The sisters continued to eat the rest of their breakfast, with Jane continuing her story of the previous night. After the interruption by Lucy's night nurse, Charles and Jane had parted ways with a last kiss and a promise to talk the next day. As Jane recalled the events of the previous night, Elizabeth hoped that Charles wouldn't let her sister down as George had.

"I'm glad that this is working out so far, Jane." Lydia smiled.

"I don't want to get ahead of myself," Jane sighed, "But he seems so…genuine…kind…gorgeous…"

The sisters shared a grin before Jane deliberately turned the tables back on Elizabeth. The sisters talked a little more about Elizabeth's pain over her infertility, how she had been holding it in for weeks and how she opened up to Will and nearly crossed that line. Lydia didn't say a word as Elizabeth told her story and when she came to the end of the brief version, Lydia wrapped her arms around her and held her tightly.

"David is such a dick." Lydia whispered.

Elizabeth sighed heavily.

"It is what it is. Our marriage would have ended eventually, we weren't meant to spend the rest of our lives together." She replied.

"Maybe so," Lydia said gently, "But you nearly kissed Will so what does that mean?"

"That I drank too much that if affected my judgement?" Elizabeth suggested.

"Okay, let's all agree that alcohol was in your system. But this is us you're talking to, Lizzy. We both know that you're not the type of person to nearly kiss someone and have it not mean anything." Jane pointed out.

Jane had a valid point. Even before she met David and married him, Elizabeth wasn't the type of person to sleep around, kiss a stranger or two. She had always been the type of girl that wanted intimacy and connection. Commitment and love. Her sisters knew her too well for her to even try to deny that her near kiss with Will the night before was nothing and the result of too much alcohol consumption.

"I'm not ready for another relationship. I don't even know if I want anything with Will." She admitted quietly.

"But you like him, that much is clear." Lydia said softly.

"I don't know," Elizabeth groaned, "It isn't an ideal situation."

"Why not?" Jane asked.

"Number one: I'm getting divorced which isn't finalised yet. Number two: he's my boss. Number three: There's a child involved, and I don't want it to get messy." Elizabeth replied.

"So maybe not right now…but maybe in the future you might be open to starting something with him?" Lydia questioned.

"I think I need some time guys. Now, there's something else I need to discuss before Jane goes out with Peter."

With the matter of the night before out of the way, Elizabeth told her sisters about her divorce settlement that David had offered her and what she planned to do with the money. She told them that she wanted to give it to the twins for their futures and help them where she could with that money. Both her sisters seemed shocked at her gesture until Jane cleared her throat and ran her hands through Lucy's hair.

"Lizzy…I really appreciate what you want to do for them…but I don't know if I can accept…" Jane said breathlessly.

"I understand it's a lot to take in," Elizabeth stated, "If you want to take some time to think about my offer, it's okay."

"Are you sure that you don't want to use that money, Lizzy? There's a lot you could do with it." Lydia asked.

"I know there is. But my wages per month to look after Mia are very generous, I've already bought a car and I'm saving for a deposit on a mortgage which I should have when Christmas comes around. I don't need that money; I don't want it." Elizabeth replied.

"You may feel like that now, but what about the future when you realise you could have used that money on something? You could use it to travel, you said you never really got to do anything like that when you were married. Or what if you wanted to start your own business?" Jane suggested.

"You could start a childminding business Lizzy!" Lydia said encouragingly.

Her sisters' suggestions over what she could do with her divorce settlement made her think. She had hardly used her degree until now and she really enjoyed her job as a childminder to Mia. Starting her own childminding business was an idea that intrigued her and for a moment, she found herself deciding to think a little more about it.

"I have to admit, your idea for me to start a childminding business is intriguing." Elizabeth murmured.

"Give it some thought, Lizzy. If you still want to gift the money to Peter and Lucy, then I will think about it. But I want you to really consider this idea. This could be the start of a future for you." Jane stated.

"But I don't want to use David's money to start the next chapter of my life." Elizabeth sighed.

"It isn't David's money, Lizzy. It's yours from being entitled to it for being married to him. Stop thinking of it as David's."

But before any more discussion on the subject could be said, footsteps of an excited four-year-old boy came rushing down the stairs dressed for the spending the day with his mother.

ooOoo

Will sat his in his study, one hand holding a lukewarm cup of coffee whilst the other hand held down the mouse as he flicked through the emails that showed up on his computer screen. But his focus wasn't on his emails nor his drink. His mind was racing through the events of the previous night and between scolding himself for nearly crossing the line and not keeping his feelings in check and guilt for putting his employee in a situation she shouldn't have been put in, he felt disappointed with himself.

Elizabeth had rushed out of the door and he didn't know whether he should text her or call her and ask to meet so he could apologise for putting her into that situation. He decided against it, he didn't think it would be best to talk to her if he didn't know what he was going to say.

And what was he supposed to say in this situation? That he liked her against his better judgement. He wasn't supposed to like her the way he did. He wasn't supposed to want her in every way possible when he was paying her for the job of looking after his child. He wasn't supposed to have feelings for the woman he paid to care for Mia, especially when he knew that Mia had a bond with said childminder.

But before he could do anymore thinking on the subject, there was a tiny tap of knuckles on his office door. He looked up and smiled as he saw his daughter standing in the doorway, still dressed in her pyjamas.

"Have you had breakfast?" Will asked.

Mia nodded, brushing her curly hair out of her face.

"What's the matter, dad?" she asked.

"Nothing sweetheart. I just did something silly." Will replied.

Mia walked over to him and stood next to him.

"Was it bad? Are you in trouble?" she asked in concern.

"I didn't break the law darling, don't worry."

"I know you wouldn't dad. You know the law."

"That's right. But sometimes grown ups make mistakes and those mistakes can sometimes make friendships end and in this case, I don't want that to happen." Will explained.

"Did you hurt Uncle Charlie's feelings? Or his sister's?" Mia asked.

"Not Uncle Charlie…hang on…why are you asking about Caroline?" Will asked quickly, frowning.

Mia had only met Caroline a handful of times and he made it a point not to discuss his best friend's sister in front of his daughter. After Natalie had died, Caroline had asked him out to dinner as friends to take his mind off his wife's death and whilst Caroline had seen it as a date and tried to make a move on him, he had firmly put Caroline in her place. He had always known that Caroline had fancied him, or rather fancied the life his family's money could provide if he would marry her. But he had always made it rather clear to Caroline that he didn't see her in that way. After putting Caroline firmly in her place that night of their dinner together, he had informed Charles of the incident and made it clear that any events he and Mia were to attend that Charles was hosting, Caroline would not be near his daughter for fear of the woman's efforts to win him over. He had witnessed first hand Caroline's awful attempts to come between him and Natalie during the early stages of their relationship and for the most part he was able to avoid having anything to do with Caroline – but knowing the type of person that Caroline was, he suspected that she would try and get closer to him by using his daughter.

Mia went quiet, her eyes diverting to the computer screen as if there was something more interesting on the screen. Will took hold of his daughter's hand and squeezed it reassuringly, bringing her gaze back to his.

"Mia?" Will pressed softly.

His daughter took a deep breath and exhaled slowly.

"She…she works at my school…teaching assistant…she's been…asking me stuff about you…about us…telling me…she wants us to be family…" Mia said, her voice full of fear.

Will frowned.

"Okay…I'll deal with this…is there anything else?" he asked.

Mia nodded.

"She…said that it would be great if she were my new mum…that I could go to a posh school…that she would look after you while I was sent away…she said you would be glad to have me gone…that you think a posh school would be best for me because I wouldn't be around riff raff…"

Will felt the blood in veins becoming hotter as rage set through him.

"Is this why you've been a little upset at school?"

Mia nodded again.

"And were you really ill yesterday?"

Mia shook her head, a tear falling down her cheek which Will wiped away with his thumb.

"Dad…please don't send me away…I don't want to go anywhere…I want to stay here with you…with Alice…and with Lizzy…" Mia pleaded.

"You're not going anywhere!" Will promised fiercely.

Mia threw her arms around his neck and he held her tightly as his arms wrapped around her protectively. Knowing the reason was Caroline as to why his daughter had been acting strangely at home and in school made him angry. But he was determined to deal with the matter as soon as he could. When his daughter felt a little calmer, Mia looked at him again with a worried frown.

"Are you cross with me?" she whispered.

"No sweetheart. You aren't the one who has done something wrong." He whispered back.

"What are you going to do?" Mia asked.

"First I'm going to call Uncle Charlie. Next, I'm going to email your headteacher and request a meeting. This will get sorted and she won't ever speak to you about these things again. I promise you, Mia, that none of the things she said will ever happen." Will replied.

Sharing another hug, Will lifted Mia on to his lap and held her close as he quickly went through his emails: deleting the ones that weren't important and leaving the ones that were unread; he would return to them later. For now, he had made the decision to sort out the Caroline issue and then spend the day with his daughter. Mia needed him right now, everything else could wait.

"Dad, can I ask you something?" Mia asked curiously.

"Anything." Will stated softly.

"Do you think we could build our family one day?"

Will looked at his daughter curiously.

"What do you mean?" he asked her.

"Well…I like that it's me and you and Alice…but sometimes I think there's something missing…"

"Like your mother?"

Mia shrugged.

"I don't really remember mum. Her face gets blurry if I try and remember. I have to look at pictures to remember." His daughter said quietly.

"Your mother loved you so much. It was unfair that she was taken from us when you were so young." Will muttered.

"You tell me stuff all the time, dad. I know mum loved me. But sometimes I get a little sad that I can't make stuff for Mother's Day like the other kids at school get to." Mia said sadly.

"You always make that stuff for me." Will reminded her with a smile.

"I know. But sometimes I want someone to take care of you like mum used to. Sometimes I get sad that you might be lonely."

"I'll be fine, sweetheart." Will said reassuringly.

"You can't be on your own forever." Mia sighed.

"And I won't be. I have you." Will smiled.

"What about Lizzy?"

Ah. There he froze. His heart started beating rapidly against his chest with panic. Had Mia been spying last night? Had she seen something between him and Elizabeth that she wasn't supposed to have seen? He had believed that everyone had been asleep when he and Elizabeth had returned to the house last night.

Will cleared his throat before he spoke.

"What about Elizabeth?" he asked.

"She likes us. She likes you. We spend a lot of time with her." Mia replied with a smile.

"She's a nice person."

"Dad…if you wanted to love Lizzy…it would be okay…"

Leaving him to think their conversation over, Mia got up from her father's lap and walked out of the study and along to her bedroom. Will wasn't sure what he was going to do but knowing that Mia would be okay if he decided to pursue Elizabeth one day made him feel a lot better.


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N:** Thank you all for the well wishes, luckily my dad and his partner have both made a full recovery. Three weeks into lockdown and I'm coping a little better mostly because it's been a scorcher for a weekend and we've had the barbecue cleaned and a new paddling pool ordered for the garden. However, the lockdown is going to be extended (no surprises there even if it hasn't been officially announced) and each day the schools remain closed is another day I have to challenge myself with homeschooling. Thank god for a two week school holiday!

Happy Easter, I hope you enjoy this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it. I hope to get another done soon.

 **Chapter Fourteen**

Monday morning. Despite the bright sky and scorching heat at eight-thirty in the morning, Elizabeth had been dreading turning up for work this morning. She knew that she wouldn't be seeing Will until about fiveish so she had about eight hours or so to get through her work day and think about what she was going to say to him. But as she knocked on the front door of the Darcy's house, she got a surprise.

Will opened the door and stood there, looking at her as if this were the first time he was setting his eyes on her. He was dressed in his usual work shirt, tie, trousers. Shirt tucked in. Leather shoes on. Watch ticking away on his right wrist. His curly hair neatly brushed. And the way he studied her, the way his eyes never left hers, the way she saw his fingers twitch as if he wanted to do something, but it took his willpower to stop himself. She felt that pull that she had felt on Saturday night, mere inches between them but this time her head was telling her not to close those few inches and press her lips to his.

The air was thin between them, they each took a step towards the other, with Will stepping out on to his driveway until they could each hear the other breathing. But their moment was lost when Elizabeth saw Mia appear in the doorway behind her father.

"Morning Lizzy." Mia greeted.

"Good morning Mia, how are you?" Elizabeth smiled.

"I'm okay."

Elizabeth watched as Mia squeezed her father's hand before walking off into the living room. She stepped into the doorway, closing the door behind her as she faced her boss. On her way over she had been hoping she would have the entire day to work out what she was going to say to quite Will but now she was unsure of what she was going to do.

"I wasn't expecting to see you until tonight." She said quietly.

"I know it's not the norm, but I have a meeting with Mia's headteacher today. I discovered the reason behind her unusual behaviour." Will explained.

"Oh? What was bothering her?" Elizabeth asked, feeling slightly more at ease that they could distract themselves with talk of Mia.

"A teaching assistant has been harassing her and trying to use her."

"Use her for what?"

"It's Caroline. You met her on Saturday. It turns out she has been trying to paint Mia a picture about what her life could be like if Caroline were to become her new mother."

Elizabeth couldn't stop the surge of jealousy that ran through her. So, Caroline was now trying to have a second chance with Will, but this time was hoping to get Mia to warm up to her and get the girl onside before she and Will gave it another shot?

"Oh…well I'm sorry to hear that Mia isn't taking this so well…What was said exactly?" Elizabeth asked curiously.

"She begged me not to send her away and Caroline is telling her that a private school would be the best opportunity for her. That she wants to be her new mum and wants us all to be a family." Will replied quietly.

She noticed his clenched jaw and the fierce look in his brown eyes, it made her nervous. She had never seen him angry before and that confused her even more.

"Well she certainly shouldn't be trying to win your favour by harassing Mia at all. Especially not when she is abusing her position of authority." Elizabeth sighed.

"No…well that's why I need to talk to the headteacher and sort the situation out…I won't have Mia's wellbeing affected." Will stated.

"Of course not. It would be down to you to decide how to proceed regarding any relationship with her that you may have." Elizabeth said quietly.

Will frowned at her. He seemed confused for some reason.

"Elizabeth…there is nothing between Caroline and I." he whispered reassuringly.

"Oh…she may have alluded…to something…it doesn't matter…" she stammered.

She went to move into the living room after Mia but felt Will's hand close over hers, gently pulling her back to face him. She tried to ignore the warmth of his skin on hers, sending a shiver down her spine as he closed the gap between them.

"I'm not interested in Caroline." He whispered.

Her heart was hammering in her chest, a fluttering formed in the pit of her stomach. She still had no idea what she was supposed to say. The way he was looking at her…she had seen it before. Long ago she had seen this look between her parents. She had seen this look shared between Jane and George long before the twins had been born. She had seen this look as recently as Lydia dancing in the bar weeks ago with Denny. She had seen this look as recently as yesterday watching her sister recall her first kiss with Charles. It was a look that told her that Saturday night for Will wasn't something he regretted. She knew that they would be discussing Saturday night and it needed to happen soon.

Their eyes bore into the other's, their lips mere inches from each other. She could feel his hiked pace of breath on her face, their noses bumped together lightly and their lips about to sample the smoothness when a child's voice called to them from the living room.

"Lizzy, can you do my hair please?"

They pulled apart, both their heads turning towards the direction of the living room. Luckily, Mia hadn't walked back out into the hallway to look for them, she had remained in the living room to wait for them. Elizabeth stepped aside, her heart beating so fast in her chest that she was sure it would burst from her ribcage. She took a deep breath as she looked at Will apologetically and stepped into the living room.

She wanted to hit herself in the face for her stupidity. She had almost kissed her boss for the second time in forty-eight hours and had failed to even put a stop to it. As she sat on the sofa, Mia handed her the hairbrush and sat on the floor in front of her. Elizabeth began to gently brush the curly hair, getting out the knots and asking how Mia wanted her hair styled. She concentrated on the French plait that Mia had requested, knowing that Will was watching her the entire time.

"How did you learn to do this plait, Lizzy?" Mia questioned.

"I used to practice on my younger sister after my older sister taught me how to do it." Elizabeth answered.

"Is it hard?"

"At first, I could teach you how to do it if you like?"

Mia took her up on her offer just as Elizabeth had finished tying off the end of the French plait with a hairband. She watched as the little girl thanked her and gathered up her school bag before giving Alice a goodbye hug. As Elizabeth stood up, she tried to ignore her pounding heart as Will followed them out the front door and the three of them walked to Mia's school together.

ooOoo

Entering the headteacher's office, Will felt less stressed having Elizabeth by his side. He had wanted Caroline to be included within this meeting, but Mrs. Phillips had refused. Due to the professional environment they were in, Will wouldn't be able to have it out with Caroline here and now. Instead, all he could do was make a formal complaint and let the school investigate. After retelling what he had been told by his daughter the night before and what he expected to happen, Mrs. Phillips gave her apologies and promised the matter would be dealt with: they would speak with Caroline and suspend her with full pay until further notice as they investigated and took appropriate action. In the meantime, Mrs. Phillips asked that he have no contact with Caroline while the investigation took place so they could ensure that Mia's wellbeing was put first. All through the meeting, the three of them discussed Mia's recent withdrawal, her lack of interest in her activities and life, the pretence that Mia had been ill on Saturday to avoid attending Charles' housewarming barbecue. They talked about Mia's fear that Caroline had instilled in her and how his daughter had pleaded with him not to be sent away.

Once the meeting had concluded, they left the office only to see that Caroline was sat in the waiting area to be spoken to by Mrs. Phillips. Caroline didn't acknowledge him but seemed to glare through narrowed eyes at Elizabeth which only made him even angrier. Elizabeth took hold of his arm, guiding him out of the school building and out of the school grounds.

"That woman!" he growled angrily.

Elizabeth let go of his arm, not saying anything or doing anything other than listening to him rant about Caroline. She was silent as he rambled on about how much he despised his best friend's sister when her attention moved from him to something behind him. Will turned around, seeing Caroline exiting the school grounds looking absolutely furious.

"You!" Will shouted.

Caroline jumped out of her skin.

"Da-Darcy. I can assure you-"

"Spare me your lies! How dare you fill my daughter's head with your delusions?" Will growled.

"She exaggerated." Caroline insisted defensively.

"Mia wouldn't lie about this. Stay away from my daughter or you'll regret it!"

Will felt a tug on his arm and allowed Elizabeth to lead him away from Caroline just as the detestable woman walked off in the opposite direction. Will pulled out his phone, about to flick through his recent contacts to call his best friend when Elizabeth grabbed the phone off him.

"What are you doing?" Will demanded.

"You're angry. Yelling down the phone at Charles about his sister isn't ideal. Besides, what is he going to do about it?" Elizabeth asked rationally.

"Kick his sister to the curb. She is staying in his house."

"Well yeah…there is that. But you need to calm down first. If Charles is a good friend, then he'll know who to believe. Let Caroline go there and spout whatever lies come out of her mouth to her brother, but he will know you are telling the truth when you tell him your side of the story."

He looked her in the eye, those green eyes were one of those things about her that captivated him. As they gazed at each other, he felt himself relaxing as she took hold of his hands and gave them a supportive squeeze. Will knew that she was right. Shouting about Caroline to Charles wouldn't solve anything. For now, the woman had been suspended from her job while they investigated his complaint and he would speak with Charles about the situation and ask that he end her stay with him. But it needed to be done when he was in a calmer mood.

And there was also the matter of clearing up any confusion between him and Elizabeth.

Saturday night had been filled with laughter, enjoyment of company, confiding in friends and too much alcohol to make a good decision. He had given in to the temptation to kiss her, the built up want to kiss her and his growing feelings for her had overcome his common sense – that and the alcohol but mostly the other two things. She had wanted it to, at least he thought that she did. Until the interruption and she had bolted out the house.

And then there was this morning. The awkwardness between them had faded once he had informed her of Mia's trouble with Caroline. Mia was their common ground and where they could talk comfortably with each other. But then she had mentioned that Caroline had alluded to something between them and it was clear to him that it bothered Elizabeth. He quickly felt the need to assure her that he had no interest in Caroline and was mere seconds away from feeling the texture of her lips when Mia had interrupted them – thankfully, not witnessing their moment.

Now she was stood here in front of him, calming him down, holding his hands and looking at him with a confusion he felt as well. Without even thinking about the reasons why it wasn't a good idea, he removed a hand from hers and using the other he pulled her to him, their bodies touching together, and he dipped his head and kissed her hungrily. His free arm wrapped around her back to hold her to him. She moaned happily as her mouth opened and he kissed her more deeply. Elizabeth wrapped her arms around his neck. Will held her tightly as he poured his entire focus into kissing her thoroughly, his tongue teasing hers. She responded to each time he kissed her as passionately as he could and it thrilled him when he felt her fingers running through his curly hair, playing with the tendrils at the nape of his neck.

Will wasn't sure how long it lasted but he eventually pulled away to give her a chance to catch her breath. But he kept her in his arms, moving his lips along her cheek, down her jaw and nipped at her ear before bumping his forehead lightly against her own to catch his own breath. Her breathing was hiked, as it had been earlier that morning and her eyes were closed as if she didn't want to open them in case this kiss had been just a dream.

But it wasn't a dream. It really had happened.

"I don't know where we go from here…" she whispered; eyes still closed.

He gave a low, throaty chuckle as he ran his fingers through her silky waves, cupping her cheek as she fluttered her eyelids open to look at him.

"I'm not sure either." He admitted quietly.

Elizabeth untangled her arms from him and stepped out of his arms, possibly looking even more confused than she had before he had kissed her.

"Will…I'm not even divorced yet, it could take months before I am-"

"Your lawyer's firm have the reputation of dealing with divorces rather quickly. You have accepted your ex-husband's settlement offer. Therefore, I'd say it will all be finalised by September. October at the latest." Will interrupted.

"I wanted to have some time by myself before diving into another relationship." Elizabeth sighed.

"And you can. I'm not putting any pressures on you nor am I expecting you to have all the answers, Elizabeth." Will said reassuringly.

"And what about Mia?" Elizabeth questioned, "I love looking after her, I love working for you in that capacity. What about our working relationship? I can't have a romantic relationship with my boss."

"Mia is perfectly happy for me to have a romantic relationship with you. As for our professional relationship…I won't deny there are some things that need to be worked out. But we have time, Elizabeth." Will answered.

"I'm not going to ask you to wait for me to sort my head out." Elizabeth stated.

"I'm not asking anything. I'm not telling you how this is going to be. I want you to make your own decisions and know that if I am what you want then I am not going anywhere. When you are ready to be with me, we can take this as slowly as you like. Just know that it is you that I want." Will said in a firm whisper.

"This could get messy." Elizabeth warned.

"We're both grown adults with the best intentions. Let's just see how the next few weeks go and spend time together, if we kiss then we kiss. You have time to make any decisions that you want. No labels but I will be only with you." Will promised.

"I can't spend more time putting another man's needs before my own. I just wasted five years of my life doing just that."

"Well I like to think that your ex-husband is a selfish prick for allowing that to happen. Marriage is about an equal partnership. Finding your way through the hard times with your life partner. Any relationship should be that way. As for my needs, I am perfectly capable of looking after myself."

Elizabeth gave out a laugh of ease, smiling at him a little. It may have come across that he was willing to wait for her and in truth, he was. However, he wasn't going to deny himself any longer on what it was that he wanted. Having already gotten his daughter's approval and having reflected during the past few days that he didn't regret what had happened between them, Will knew that he wanted to be with Elizabeth. For him, he knew that she had a lot going on that she needed to sort out. He wanted to give her as much time as she needed to get her head straight and in turn that would give him an option to think about their professional relationship. The two didn't say anything further and neither pushed whatever it was between them as they made the walk back to his house, they both still had their workdays to contend with after all.

Little did they know that Caroline hadn't walked off in the opposite direction. Little did they know that the redheaded viper was watching them from afar, watching Will kiss Elizabeth so passionately that she wished it were her in his arms. Little did they know that Caroline, although unsure of her next movements, was seething so much that she made a silent vow to do her utmost worst on the woman who had inadvertently now become her rival for Fitzwilliam Darcy.

ooOoo

The last time that George Wickham had been surrounded by so many pregnant bellies was when he had been forced to attend the first scan when Jane had been pregnant. He sat in a rather uncomfortable chair in the waiting room of the maternity department at the local hospital. Lindsay sat next to him, looking rather pale and nervous. She had decided that she couldn't go through with an abortion, despite his attempts at trying to convince her to have one, and now here they were waiting for their first official scan after an earlier emergency scan revealed they were further along in the pregnancy than originally thought.

Lindsay would get her official due date today and George wasn't sure what he was going to do. He still hadn't told her about the twins and the fact that his daughter was disabled. He didn't want her to get clingy and constantly seek his reassurance he wouldn't up and leave her the way that he had left Jane and the twins nearly three years ago.

He looked around the waiting room, feeling so bored that he contemplated going outside for a cheeky smoke; something which he had to do on the sly since he had promised Lindsay that he would quit whilst she was pregnant. Lindsay was becoming so annoying. She had already been reading through the small stack of pregnancy books she had been gifted by a colleague and had read up on how harmful smoking was for an unborn baby. Then there were the baby name books. Gah. He'd forgotten how much he detested those books. When Jane had been pregnant her intolerable mother had given her one to make a suggestion on what the twins should be called; the only supportive thing her mother had done during Jane's pregnancy. The rest of the time Fran Bennet made snide remarks about how their children were bastards, how they were wrong to raise children when they weren't marred, etcetera etcetera…

Finally, Lindsay's name was called and the two of the rose from their seats and walked across the waiting room to one of the tiny darkened rooms. Once they were inside with the door clicking to a shut behind them, Lindsay propped herself up on the bed and lay back, unbuttoning her shorts and tucking the piece of tissue paper the sonographer handed her into her underwear. George took a seat, looking at the screen impatiently as the sonographer went through what the procedure entailed, what they were going to be doing. Blah blah blah.

"I see you've consented for the screening. You've had your bloods taken and we'll measure the fluid at the back of the baby's neck. In a few weeks time you'll receive a letter with your results." The sonographer reiterated.

"What exactly are you looking for in this screening?" George asked, confused.

"It's not a hundred percent accurate but the screening determines if you are low risk or high risk of having a baby with Down's syndrome, Patau's syndrome and Edwards' syndrome." The sonographer replied.

"And what happens if we're high risk?" Lindsay asked.

"You'll have a consultant appointment who will then discuss further options. You could decide to have an amniocentesis which will determine more accurately whether the baby has these syndromes."

George felt his heart pound in his chest. Surely the baby would be fine? This was a routine test after all, and it wasn't always accurate. Plenty of people had to have been high risk and their baby hadn't come out with either of the three conditions mentioned. As he watched the scan go ahead, he couldn't focus on the little blob or the little heartbeat on the screen, all he could think about was the little girl he had abandoned shortly after her second birthday because it had been confirmed she had a rare chromosome deletion which caused her developmental delays. Jane hadn't known anything was wrong during her pregnancy and it had been hard for him to have a child with a disability, so he had left.

"George, isn't it amazing?" Lindsay said happily.

He blinked, his eyes moving from the screen to his 'girlfriend' and smiled weakly.

"Yeah…amazing…" he said absentmindedly.

His eyes moved back to the little blob on the screen, watching as the sonographer took measurements to get their exact due date.

Yeah…he thought…nothing is wrong. This baby will be perfect.


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N:** I'm sorry if this chapter isn't what many of you were expecting. I did plan to write a long one and cover the six weeks summer holiday within this chapter but with so many plot lines, I decided to split it over the course of a few chapters. We still have some Charles and Jane to come and more of Elizabeth and Will and of course, Mia. And the dreaded Caroline in future chapters. Timing still isn't great at the moment, homeschooling has taught me that I'm no qualified teacher and I can't do it full-time. Praying you are all safe and well wherever you all are in the world, I'm hoping this virus F's off soon so we can slowly return to normal, I'm missing hugging my family.

Enjoy!

 **Chapter Fifteen**

The third week of July had come and with it the start of the summer holidays. Six weeks of children not attending school and spending quality time with their families. Perhaps they would go on holiday, perhaps make memories at different places they visited. For Elizabeth, she was determined to make Mia's summer holiday as memorable as possible. Her workday routine had changed from early starts to take Mia to school to now starting at nine-thirty in the morning and consisted of getting Mia ready for the day and keeping her occupied with activities or visits to different places.

During the first official week of the summer holidays, Elizabeth had used one of her holiday days to attend Lydia's graduation ceremony from university. She felt a surge of pride watching her sister officially graduate with her friends and afterwards they had gone to a local restaurant in Meryton to celebrate and the happy mood had soon soured. They had to wait to be seated at their booked table upon arrival which wouldn't have been an issue – Lucy, who didn't deal with change very well, was given her tablet as a distraction while Peter was happily colouring on a notepad that Jane had brought along to keep the twins amused. They had taken a seat in the bar area of the restaurant while they waited for their table to be available to them, but Fran had decided to kick up a stink. Elizabeth could only roll her eyes and mouth silent apologies to the disgruntled customers who had their meal interrupted by Fran's shrill shrieking at the restaurant manager. Lucy was quickly distressed by all the shouting and launched her tablet across the restaurant before diving under the tiny table with her hands over her ears and tucked her arms around her body and rocked as she wailed at the top of her lungs.

"Jane! Shut the girl up will you!" Fran snarled across the bar.

Jane had stood up whilst Thomas sat on the floor to soothe Lucy and marched up to her mother and said: "You're the one that needs to shut up!"

After that, the restaurant manager had asked that they leave the restaurant and Jane had had to carry her daughter kicking and screaming out of the building and wrestle Lucy into her car seat. Lydia felt disappointed that her day was now ruined, and Fran and Thomas continued to argue about the former's embarrassing behaviour the whole ride home. When they had arrived home, Elizabeth had called her sister to check on the twins and her sister's state before suggesting to Lydia that the two of them have a takeaway – Elizabeth's treat. All the while their parents continued to argue before Thomas stormed out the house to go for a walk. It wasn't all bad though, for the time being Lydia had moved back home whilst she looked around for postgraduate positions in banks, trying to use the degree she gained in financial management. For Elizabeth, it felt nice having her little sister back at home again.

Aside from parental arguments, Elizabeth was rather enjoying the time she spent outside the home. During the first week of the summer holidays Will had given her a debit card to a bank account with funds for Elizabeth to use to pay for Mia's activities and days out over the six-week summer holiday. She was required to give him receipts at the end of each day, but she was able to use the money for meals, museums, theme parks, trips to the seaside or tourist spots – wherever the day took them. The first few days of that first week Elizabeth had stayed local. She and Mia had packed a picnic and taken it the local park by the community centre. They had spent the entire afternoon playing on the swings and eating fresh fruit, sausage rolls, crisps, and biscuits in the park. Another day they had gone to the local public swimming pool for an afternoon and took a long walk over the country hill near to the side of town that Elizabeth lived on. That first week had finished off with a barbecue at the Darcy residence, eating burgers and hot dogs while basking in the hot sun, topped off with a water fight that ended up with Elizabeth drenched in a bucket of water that Will had poured over her head in revenge for her soaking him with her water gun.

After sending Mia upstairs for a quick wash and to change into her pyjamas, Will came into the living room holding some clothes and handed them to Elizabeth.

"What's this?" Elizabeth asked.

"Just some clothes that Georgie left here, I thought you could put them on and wear them home, it's not like your clothes are dry." Wil replied.

"Are you sure Georgie won't mind you lending them to me?" she asked.

Will shook his head.

"No, she's probably forgotten she left them here. Take them. Wear them home and wash them. Then bring them back here when you're done."

So, she had done just that. She had bid Mia goodnight and had taken Alice up on her offer to use her toiletries to freshen herself up and after dressing in her borrowed clothes and using Alice's hairdryer to dry her hair, Elizabeth walked back downstairs to see Will waiting for her at the bottom of the stairs.

"I just wanted to let you know that I have some time off occurring in the last week of August for Mia's birthday. You won't be required to work but you'll be given your own holiday pay, so you won't lose out on your wages." Will informed her.

"Thank you. Can I buy Mia a birthday present?" Elizabeth questioned.

"If you wish. But you don't have to."

"I want to." Elizabeth smiled, "I feel very fortunate to have you both in my life."

Bidding each other goodnight, Elizabeth got into her car and drove away, the ending of that first week of the summer holidays a lot better than it had started.

The second week of the summer holidays took them to the end of July and the start of August. Elizabeth had arrived on Monday morning to learn from Alice that Will would not be home for dinners this week due to a large caseload that required a lot of input. Mia was missing her father terribly, having not seen him since Sunday dinner so for two days, Elizabeth tried her best to distract Mia from her father's absence. But despite her best efforts, Mia was down in the dumps and nothing could bring her out of her misery. On the Wednesday, Elizabeth had decided to be spontaneous and cheer both Mia up and surprise Will – after all, he had to be missing Mia as much as she was missing him. Elizabeth had arrived at the Darcy residence earlier than she usually would have and instructed Mia to ready herself for the day and pack a backpack as quick as she could with some things she might need. Alice made them both a lunchbox for the train and by nine o'clock, Mia and Elizabeth had arrived at Meryton train station taking the train into London. It was a short journey before they took the tube through London and spent the day at the Tower of London, the London Eye and took the tube all over to see Trafalgar Square, Covent Garden and Buckingham Palace before they took one final tube journey to the part of central London that Will's firm offices were located.

They had entered the offices and waited by the reception desk as Will came out to see who was waiting for him. The moment that he stepped into the reception area, Mia ran to him and threw her arms around him tightly. Will looked pleasantly surprised as he hugged his daughter tightly, lifting her off her feet for a few moments before placing her back on the ground.

"I wasn't expecting this." Will breathed with a smile.

"I thought you both might need a little cheering up because you're missing each other." Elizabeth replied.

"Wow…this is…so thoughtful. Thank you." Will smiled.

They spent a few minutes chatting in the reception before Will went to his boss' office to ask for an early leave. Minutes later, Will greeted them once again carrying his briefcase and they left the office together.

That evening, they got a late evening train back to Meryton. Their bellies were filled with the McDonald's that Mia had requested they eat for dinner and after leaving the fast food restaurant near to Will's offices, they were now sat on the train headed home. Mia was tired, her little head was propped up against her father's chest, with Will's left arm wrapped around her tightly. As she sat opposite father and daughter, Elizabeth found herself observing them both. She noticed how Mia slept and Will tapped away on his phone replying to a work email that they both shared the same little nose twitch on a deep breath. Since the beginning she had watched the bond between Will and Mia, and it was in their presence she found herself feeling calm during the ongoing storm around her. Now she realised that father and daughter didn't just make her feel calm, they made her feel blessed to be part of their little bubble of happiness.

Being with the Darcys everyday had made her realise that just because she could not conceive a child didn't mean that a child couldn't fulfil her life in other ways. For one thing, she thoroughly enjoyed looking after Mia everyday and she enjoyed spending time with Lucy and Peter on the weekends. The end of her marriage and her sister's supportive suggestion of starting a childminding business was something she had also been contemplating over the weeks. Starting her own business, looking after children and helping them to develop and learn was something that could fulfil her even more.

Just as she was lost in thought over the positives in her life, she found herself meeting Will's amused gaze. His brown eyes were bright and the corners of his lips twitched into a slight smirk.

That bloody smirk. It made her flush in the cheeks.

"See something you like?" Will teased quietly.

"Maybe."

No more words were said during their train journey home. Even when they got off the train and Mia had been gently shaken awake by her father, they walked home in sleepy silence, at one point Mia had her arms wrapped around her father's left arm and was walking sleepily next to him, yawning loudly as they walked through the streets. Elizabeth walked next to Will, her heart skipping a beat as she felt him take hold of her hand with his and gave it a light squeeze. She smiled at him as she squeezed his hand back and together the three walked back to the Darcy's house and stepped inside the hallway as Will opened the front door.

"How was your day out?" Alice asked, greeting them warmly.

"Good." Mia yawned, "Thank you, Lizzy."

"Come on love, let's get you ready for bed."

Alice led a sleepy Mia up the stairs and disappeared, leaving Elizabeth alone with Will in the hallway.

"Well…I should head home…" Elizabeth said quietly.

As she turned to head out the still open front door, she felt Will grasp her wrist gently and whisper 'Wait' as he closed the gap between them.

"Thank you for what you did today, it truly meant a lot to me." Will said warmly.

"I just wanted to make you both happy. Mia really missed you and I thought it would be a nice way the two of you could see each other this week." Elizabeth explained.

Will entangled a hand into her wavy loose locks and Elizabeth felt her cheeks reddening as he held her gaze.

"It's been so long since I met someone who would do something that nice for me and my daughter. Thank you for the gesture, it means more than I can say." Will whispered.

"You don't need to say anything." Elizabeth muttered.

Leaning up, Elizabeth pressed her lips to his and kissed him sweetly, her lips moving softly over his own. Will groaned as their tongues met, wrapping his arms around her tightly, holding her close. Their lips move together in perfect rhythm, her arms wrapped around his neck, his trailed up her back as he continued to hold her close. Elizabeth smiled against his lips as he broke the kiss to catch his breath. It only lasted a second before he kissed her heatedly.

"I wish…you could…stay…" he murmured between heated kisses.

"Mmmm," Elizabeth moaned, breaking the kiss, "I would but I have work tomorrow."

Will grinned mischievously at her.

"I can always allow a late start." He hinted.

Elizabeth let out a low laugh, keeping her arms around his neck.

"We can't." she whispered seriously.

Will sighed, kissing her nose before cupping her cheek. He brought his lips to hers and kissed her once more before moving away from her.

"Goodnight Elizabeth." Will said softly.

Elizabeth smiled at him and bade him goodnight before stepping out on to the driveway and got in her car to drive home.

ooOoo

The past three weeks had been anxious for Lindsay Younge. Her first scan had gone exceedingly well, she got to watch as the sonographer showed her how her baby was developing, and they were sent home with scan pictures and smiles. She and George had discussed baby names, whose last name the baby was going to take and where they were going to live. George had been in the middle of telling her that he was going to look for a better paid job when she got the phone call from the midwife.

"Your test results have come back. We need you to come in to discuss the results."

They had immediately made an appointment and went to the hospital to discuss the results of the test. The consultant confirmed that Lindsay was at a higher risk of the baby having Down's Syndrome. The consultant had talked them through their options, and both walked away from the appointment with the agreement of going ahead with an amniocentesis to determine if their child had Down's syndrome.

Today had been two weeks since her amniocentesis procedure and they were once again back in the consultant office trying to process the news that they had just received.

"Miss Younge, Mr Wickham, I know this must be difficult for you…" The consultant said calmly.

"Our baby….it has Down's?" George asked, his voice full of concern.

The consultant nodded sympathetically.

"The results also picked up a chromosomal abnormality. A deletion on the long arm of the…"

Lindsay tried to process the news that her unborn child not only had an extra chromosome but was missing the DNA on a part of another. What would this mean? Would her child be okay? Would her child be healthy and able to live a happy life?

"I'm confused…this chromosome deletion thingy…how do these happen?" George asked.

"Well…sometimes they happen spontaneously, these are referred to as de novo deletions but sometimes they can be inherited." The consultant replied.

"And what does this deletion mean on top of the Down's?" Lindsay asked tearfully.

"There isn't a lot of information out there because it's rare, it doesn't have an official name because it hasn't been researched by scientists. But what we can do is refer you to a geneticist and a counsellor should you wish to continue with the pregnancy." The consultant said softly.

"I do…I can't have an abortion." Lindsay said firmly.

The consultant nodded, thanking them for coming in and handed them some leaflets on Down's syndrome and some contact information for local support services that could advise them further if they wanted to get in touch. She and George left the hospital feeling numb from the news.

The bus ride home was made in utter silence from the two of them. The only sounds that Lindsay paid attention to were the mother and toddler at the front of the bus, singing songs quietly but happily together as they both shared laughter and smiles. It broke her heart to think that she might not have that with her own child.

When they got off the bus they continued to walk back to her flat in silence. George did hold her hand though, so it gave her hope that they could talk when they got home. Getting through the front door to her flat was a blur, sitting down didn't even cross her mind as she paced her living room.

"Linds-"

"I can't terminate the pregnancy." She said firmly but quietly.

"I know…but our baby is…it's gonna be…"

"I know."

George cleared his throat.

"Linds, I need to go away for a few days." He said weakly.

"Away? Where?" Lindsay questioned; her voice filled with panic.

She could not believe what she was hearing. How could George just abandon her at a time like this? On the day they found out their child had not one, but two conditions and they did not have any guarantees on how healthy their child would be once born. All Lindsay knew was that she already loved their unborn baby.

"I need…to get some answers…and to do that I need to visit someone." George replied shadily.

She frowned, her heart beating faster as she felt a knot form in her throat.

"What answers? George…you can't leave me now."

The news from the consultant was something they both needed to work through together and now here he was telling her that he needed to get some answers from someone she didn't know and she was suddenly feeling fear fill her heart, the sinking feeling of dread in her chest that he was going away and leaving her to process the news on her own.

George walked to her and kissed her on the forehead, a gesture which would usually soothe her along with the times he would usually give her a little cuddle or a pat on the back as he had done so many times after throwing her guts up in the toilet due to morning sickness. But now, there wasn't any other gesture of reassurance. And it scared her.

"This other chromosome thingy, I know someone…someone who has a kid with something similar…I just need to get some information on it and then I'll be back." George said dismissively.

Before she could ask any more questions, George pecked her cheek quickly and went into her bedroom to pack some clothes into a bag and once he was done, he shouted his goodbyes and slammed the door to a close behind him. Whatever her boyfriend was doing, Lindsay knew that she would have to do some long thinking about the baby by herself.


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N:** I really hope you lovely readers enjoy this, I've found writing a little blocked lately.

 **Chapter Sixteen**

The second week of August was the third week of the summer holidays and for Jane, this was the week where she would be more anxious than normal. She had taken the journey to the respite centre where she would be leaving Lucy for a whole week so she could get a much-needed break and spend some quality time with her son. For the past two weeks of the summer holidays she had been using a social story the charity had sent to prepare Lucy for her stay. The drive to The Netherfield Trust had been a silent one, just Jane and Lucy with the only sounds were Lucy's happy squeals as she watched Peppa Pig on her tablet. Jane knew that this would be hard for her, she had never left Lucy in the care of people she didn't really know. She could already feel a tightening in her chest as she pulled up into the carpark and switched off the car engine. Unclipping her seatbelt, Jane turned to look at her daughter.

"We're here Lucy Goosey." She said softly, smiling.

Lucy looked up from her tablet and smiled back, handing over her tablet without a fuss which was one of her latest milestones. Jane looked into her daughter's bright blue eyes and spent a few moments memorising her little's girl's face, she knew that she would only be away from Lucy for a week, but it seemed like a lifetime. As she took a breath in, she reminded herself that this respite break was much needed for everyone. Lucy needed it, Jane needed it and Peter needed it.

Jane got out of the car and went straight to the boot, opening the door and pulling out Lucy's suitcase before closing it. Two members of staff from the trust came out the reception and greeted her brightly as Jane lifted her daughter out of the car and walked over to them.

"Hello Lucy, I'm Isla." The first woman said, using Makaton sign language as she spoke.

Lucy smiled and waved as Jane placed her on the ground. The second worker introduced herself and gave Lucy a little picture timeline to show her what they were going to be doing once she was settled into the accommodation. Jane and Lucy followed the two workers into the building, passing through some corridors before heading out into what Isla called the sensory garden and Jane was blown away by how much there was for a child to stimulate their sensory needs. There were different sections in the garden. In one corner there was a padded section with soft play equipment and a ball pit, in the corner opposite there was a tepee with comfortable, brightly coloured cushions and musical instruments; drums, cymbals, hanging triangles on a frame that hung above the tepee, bottles filled with rice for shaking, xylophones for running a stick along. In the third corner a dark tent had been set up with battery operated lava lamps and torches inside. In the fourth corner there were different water features with mini waterfalls and hanging cd discs from the trees that were planted around the water features, sparkling with light as the sun hit them when they spun. But before Lucy could go off and explore her first activity, Jane knew it was time to say goodbye.

Jane knelt down on her knees, taking hold of her daughter's hands and smiled through the tears that wanted to fall freely down her cheeks. She ignored the twisting knot of guilt in the pit of her stomach and cleared her throat.

"I'll see you soon, Lucy Goosey. Mummy loves you." Jane said, using her hands to sign with Makaton to her daughter.

Lucy squealed and spun around really fast, as if unable to stay still.

"Mummy will call you and see you soon." Jane said, briefly stopping her daughter to give her a kiss on the forehead and a little squeeze before turning to Isla.

"We will phone as often as you'd like us to and feel free to call if you're worried. We will be emailing you some photos of what Lucy gets up to. But please try not to feel guilty, it's our place to help families like yours." Isla said reassuringly.

"I'll try." Jane said tearily, "Bye bye my baby girl."

As Lucy stopped spinning, she cocked her head to the side and looked in Jane's direction.

"B-b-b…b-b-b…by..bbyyee..." Lucy babbled.

Jane blew Lucy a kiss and watched as her little girl tiptoed off to one of the corners for an activity as she was led away by Isla and cried happy tears. She had to reassure Isla that she wasn't crying because of the guilt she had been feeling, in fact, in that moment the guilt had been washed away by that strong feeling of pride that her daughter had said her first word. That one milestone that she had been waiting to happen for four years. Lucy had taken two big steps today and as Jane got back into her car and buckled her seatbelt, she wiped away the tears and smiled at herself in the mirror; her daughter was going places and she was thrilled to be part of such a unique journey.

ooOoo

For a week now, George Wickham had been doing some quiet detective work. He knew that he had to tread carefully, he had after all made some very big mistakes in his life. After the consultant appointment, he had been doing some deep thinking about his unborn child's double diagnosis. The chromosome deletion the consultant had informed them their child had, he had to make sure that daughter he had already abandoned didn't have the same chromosome condition that his unborn child had. He had to get some answers from Jane, but he knew that he had to handle the situation delicately, it had been nearly three years since he had left her to raise their twins alone.

He had returned to Meryton on the off chance that Jane had not moved away from her hometown. A part of him suspected that she wouldn't have moved away, Lucy had always been hard work and Jane would've needed support from her family over the last few years and had staked out the bakery from a distance in hope of seeing Jane but had no such luck. After asking around if Thomas Bennet still lived in town, he managed to get the full address of where Jane had lived when the twins were small, he could only remember the street name and made his way over to the Bennet house.

George took a deep breath as he walked up the street and stood outside the front door. He was nervous and trying to prepare himself for the door to be slammed back in his face. But he had to get the answers he needed. For him. For Lindsay. A lot of decisions were riding on whatever the answers were. He closed his hand into a tight fist and raised it to the wooden door, rapping it hard before withdrawing and standing back, his arms tucked behind his back.

The door opened and he was surprised to see it was not Jane standing in front of him, but her younger sister Lydia. The youngest Bennet sister blinked a few times before narrowing her eyes and tried to slam the door in his but failed as George kicked his foot out to stop it.

"What the fuck are you doing here Wickham?" Lydia hissed.

"I need to speak to Jane." George said.

"She's not here. She doesn't live here anymore." Lydia replied firmly.

"Oh…can you give me her address?" George asked brightly.

Lydia laughed harshly, stepping out the front door and used her hands to push him against his chest.

"Get the fuck away from us. You think you can just show up here after three years away and think you can play daddy again? You weren't much of one to begin with and no court will give you access to the children you abandoned." She shouted.

"Lydia, I'm not here for that. I need some answers and Jane's the only one who can give them to me." George yelled.

"I'm not letting you anywhere near my sister nor her children! Go back to the gutter you crawled out of!" Lydia demanded, pushing him until he was out of their little front garden.

"If I have to barge my way into the house that's what I will do!" George threatened with an angry growl.

Lydia shoved into him hard, not hard enough for him to fall but enough for him to stumble a bit as Lydia walked backwards into the garden and shut the gate. He watched as the youngest Bennet crossed her arms and wore a facial expression that he associated with rage; he had seen it on Jane's face many times during their relationship.

"How dare you?! How can you show up here three years after you walked on my sister and your children?" Lydia spat.

"I wasn't cut out to be a dad, Lydia. Jane knew that." George said, shrugging his shoulders.

Lydia scoffed in disbelief.

"Jane thought you just needed a chance. Whatever it was that she saw in you…she thought that you were worth falling in love with. She thought that the four of you were going to be a family! And just because your daughter had some struggles you decided to leave…you are a pathetic, disgusting excuse for a human being…" she said scornfully.

"I didn't come here for a lecture from you. Now you can either tell me where Jane is or I can keep coming back here until you-"

"WICKHAM?! GET THE FUCK AWAY FROM MY FAMILY!" a male voice bellowed from the front door.

George turned to look behind Lydia and gulped. Up the little garden path walked an aged Thomas Bennet, holding a cricket bat threateningly and his green eyes filled with rage. At the doorway stood a four-year-old boy with blonde hair and bright blue eyes with a confused look on his face. When Thomas reached them, he ordered Lydia back inside to look after her nephew and George met the angry gaze of his ex-girlfriend's father.

"Thomas…I haven't come here to cause trouble…" George said pleadingly.

"Coward. Get the fuck off out of here while you're still able to breathe." Thomas growled through gritted teeth.

"Can't do that. Not until I see Jane." George sighed.

"If you think I'm letting you anywhere near my girl and my grandchildren you've got another thing coming!" Thomas growled, hitting the cricket bat to the ground before raising it up as if to strike again.

George backed away nervously, sensing that he wasn't going to get his answers today.

"I'll be back." He said with a sigh.

"Try it and you'll be losing some limbs." Thomas promised.

George nodded his understanding and turned his back on the man and began to walk away when he passed Francine and saw her delighted expression on her face, but he didn't acknowledge her and carried on walking away but he could still hear the argument between Jane's parents as he turned the corner and disappeared into the afternoon.

ooOoo

"Are you serious? He was here?!" Jane asked.

She had only arrived back at her parent's house minutes ago and straight away upon opening the front door she had been ushered into the kitchen with the door closed to a firm and quiet shut.

"Yes, your father threatened him away with a cricket bat," Francine tutted, "Such a shame. You need to give him a second chance, Jane. Those kiddies need their father in their lives."

Jane rolled her eyes.

"They don't need a waste of space like George. How can you even say that they do?" she demanded.

"All children need a father, Jane. And you need a husband!" Francine tutted.

"I'm not going to keep having this conversation with you. I had two children out of wedlock, I am raising said children on my own. One of them has special needs. Get over it." Jane stated firmly.

Francine mumbled something about being right and turned her attention back to her coffee. Jane took a mouthful of hers, not caring that she drank it too quickly and it burned her throat as she swallowed.

"The nerve of him coming back here," Thomas growled, "How can he show his face after what he's done?"

Jane sighed, the news of her ex being back in town and requesting to see her had thrown her. The thoughts of her week with Peter and her plans for a date with Charles had gone out of the window with feelings of anxiety over what it was that George could possibly want.

"Well apparently he wants answers and I'm the only one who can give them to him." Jane sighed.

"Apparently. He is up to no good, Jane. Just like always." Thomas muttered.

"People can change." Francine chipped in brightly.

"A leopard never changes it's spots, mum." Jane reminded.

"And in that prick's case, he's got a lot of spots." Thomas muttered.

"Well…surely he deserves a second chance? Oh Jane, it will be so good for the kiddies to have their daddy back." Francine urged.

Jane frowned.

"Why are you so desperate for me to allow George back into our lives?" she questioned suspiciously.

"Well it can't come as a shock to you that I believe you should have been married to George." Francine tutted.

"End of discussion. Now, I'm going to get my son and spend some quality time with him whilst Lucy is away for the week. Thank you both for watching him." Jane said dismissively towards her mother.

"What are you going to do about Wickham?" her father asked sternly.

Jane shrugged; she did not know what she was going to do. Right now, she did not want to focus on the fact her ex was lingering around Meryton. She didn't want to think about the reasons why George had returned or what questions he had for her.

"I don't know what George wants from me but what I do know is he's not having access to my children without a fight." Jane promised her father.

Kissing Thomas on the forehead, she left the kitchen and called Peter's name and both mother and son left the house and got into the car to have their day out together.

ooOoo

The rest of the afternoon was spent laying on a picnic blanket in the park near to their house looking up at the sky and watching the clouds go by. The sun had moved far eastwards during their play on the swings, on the slide and the monkey bars and even more so as they sat and ate an ice-cream that they had bought from the ice-cream van. For the first time in a long while, Jane felt at ease that she was getting some much-needed one-on-one time with her son because she often felt guilty because Lucy needed a high level of care.

"Mummy, look at that one, it looks like a rabbit!" Peter exclaimed happily.

"It's ears are gigantic." Jane chuckled.

"Maybe it trips over them and the other rabbits laugh at him." Peter observed.

"Maybe. But being different isn't a bad thing." Jane said proudly.

"Mummy?"

"Yes sweetheart?"

"When I start big school, Will Lucy be there too?" Peter asked curiously.

"She'll be in the same building but she's going to be in a different part called the unit which is for children who have struggles like Lucy. It just means that she'll be taught things in a different way." Jane replied reassuringly.

Peter nodded thoughtfully, turning his head to the side to look at his mother. Jane copied his motion, smiling at her son.

"Mummy, who was that man? The one that made Grandad cross?" her son questioned.

She paused, she didn't know whether or not to tell Peter the truth about George. The twins had never really bonded with their father during the first two years that George had stuck it out, so it didn't surprise her that Peter didn't recognise his father. A part of her didn't want the threat of George to destroy her life with her and the children but she knew that while there was a chance that Lucy may not understand the conversation she knew she would have to give them one day; she knew that Peter would. And lying to her children or not talking to them about their father would only prove more damaging in the long run.

"He's your father, sweetie." Jane sighed.

Peter frowned.

"But he left. Why is he back now?" her son asked.

"I wish I knew baby; I wish I knew."

"Why did he leave?"

Jane felt her heart twist at the question, it was the one she had been dreading to answer since the day George told her he couldn't cut it out being a dad. She wanted to prevent her children from ever feeling like they weren't wanted, ever since she had fallen pregnant, which hadn't been a planned pregnancy, she had never wanted her children to feel that they weren't wanted or loved. And since George had left her to do this on her own, she had tried her best.

"He didn't feel like he could be your daddy or be part of our family, so he left the three of us." Jane replied softly.

Peter frowned.

"But you always say we should try harder…. didn't he try harder?"

Jane shook her head sadly.

"No baby, he didn't really like to stick at things."

"He sounds like a poopoo head." Peter said matter-of-factly.

Jane nodded in agreement, smiling at her son's summary of their conversation.

"If you wanted to know more about him that would be okay darling." She said reassuringly.

Peter shook his head.

"I don't need a daddy; I have the best mummy ever."

Taking her son's hand, Jane gave it a light squeeze and the two stared back up at the sky. It was only then that Jane silently decided that it was best to get the whole George thing out of the way with sooner rather than later.

ooOoo

Elizabeth sat on the grass at the local park, cheering as Mia completed a cartwheel properly for the first time since she had been learning the skill. She leant back on her hands and looked up at the sky, enjoying the rays of sunshine as they hit her face, smiling as Mia sat next to her.

"Am I getting better, Lizzy?" Mia asked.

"You are," Elizabeth replied encouragingly, "You're so talented."

"Thanks."

Mia looked at Elizabeth curiously as the adult turned her head towards her charge, raising an eyebrow beneath her black sunglasses. The more time she spent with Mia the more she noticed little quirks the little girl shared with her father. Mia's look of curiosity was another trait that father and daughter shared.

"Yes Mia?" Elizabeth chuckled.

"Do you like my daddy?" Mia questioned with a tone of curiosity.

Elizabeth felt her cheeks redden as she blushed at Mia's question. She had been careful not to step over the line of professionalism and personal feelings whenever she was on the clock.

"Of course I do, he's a good friend." Elizabeth answered softly.

Mia raised an eyebrow and smirked. Another trait she shared with her father. And one that Elizabeth found she couldn't resist smiling at.

"Do you _like him like him_?" Mia whispered, "I won't tell anybody."

Elizabeth laughed.

"I think your daddy is amazing, Mia. You are so much like him."

Mia giggled, her curly hair bouncing slightly as she did.

"You didn't answer my question."

"I think we should talk about other things…like what would you like for your birthday?" Elizabeth deflected.

"It'd be okay if you did ya know…" Mia sang.

"Birthday presents." Elizabeth laughed.

"Fiiinnnee!" Mia grumbled mockingly.

"What toys are you into at the moment?"

"I like LOL surprise, Disney, LEGO, Barbie…Unicorns, Mermaids…I like sport stuff…"

Elizabeth nodded, taking note of what Mia said she liked. It was great to get an idea of what Mia was into brand wise at the moment but she didn't want to just gift Mia something that she would outgrow in a year or two before moving on to the next popular brand as all kids do. She wanted to get Mia something that she could cherish. Something that was significant to their growing bond.

"But you don't have to get me a present, Lizzy. Just come and spend the day with me and my dad." Mia insisted.

"Oh…I'll have to talk to your dad about that…" Elizabeth muttered.

"It's my birthday, Dad says that I choose who I want to spend it with." Mia stated happily.

Elizabeth checked the time on her phone and picked up her bag. Mia copied her actions but as both stood up, Elizabeth felt a cramp in her leg and dropped her bag, a pile of papers and leaflets falling out of it. Mia bent down to pick it up frowned as she looked at the papers that she was holding.

"Are you starting a business, Lizzy?" Mia asked, handing the papers to Elizabeth.

She took the papers and folded them back into her bag as she stood up to full height. She looked down at Mia and gestured that they should head back to the house for lunch.

"I'm thinking about starting a childminding business. Once my divorce goes through, I can start the next chapter of my story." Elizabeth replied.

"So, you're still married?"

"Legally. But I don't love him anymore."

Mia smirked again as they carried on walking back to the house.

"Because you love my dad?" she teased.

Elizabeth ruffled Mia's curly hair and grabbed her by the waist, spinning her around as Mia laughed gleefully.

"Come on you little rascal, we need to get you fed!" Elizabeth laughed.

The two carried on walking, finding a lot to laugh about together despite the heat of the day. Little did they know that a certain red head was watching them from afar.

ooOoo

Will got out of his car and closed the door, tucking his briefcase under his arm as he clicked the automatic lock button on his car keys. He walked the short distance on the driveway from his car to the front door, sorting through his keys to find the one for the house when he stopped and saw a note pinned to the front door.

 _Will,_

 _Look down and you fill find a fully loaded Nerf gun. Mia and I are waiting in the garden to do battle. Loser loads the dishwasher after dinner. May the odds be in your favour._

 _-Lizzy_

Will grinned as he looked down and saw the Nerf gun on the doorstep waiting for him. He bent down and picked it up, unlocked the door and stepped inside. Alice greeted him in the hallway as he hung up his briefcase and took off his shoes. He hung his suit jacket over the stair banister and took off his tie.

"They're waiting for you in the garden. Have fun." Alice laughed.

Will chuckled as he rolled up his sleeves, walking through the house until he stepped out into his garden. Sure enough, Mia stood a few metres apart from Elizabeth, both holding up their Nerf guns while wearing a toothy grin on their faces.

"Where did you get this idea from?" Will called, pulling back the trigger on his.

"Mia said that the two of you used to battle from time to time so we went to the toy shop after lunch and bought a third one so we could all participate." Elizabeth replied.

Will laughed, pointing his Nerf gun at Elizabeth and pressed on the trigger, a foam dart came flying out of the gun. Elizabeth squealed as she moved to her right, dodging the dart by an inch as it hit the fence behind her and fell to the ground. Mia, seeing an opportunity as Will's attention was on Elizabeth, pulled the trigger on her dart gun back and aimed straight for her father's arm. Will flinched as the dart made contact with his skin and looked in his daughter's direction. As Will went to return the action to his daughter, Elizabeth shot a dart out of her gun and the dart made contact with Will's leg.

He looked from Mia to Elizabeth and laughed, shaking his head as it became clear that prior to his arrival home, the two had obviously come up with some secret pact about their dart gun battle.

"Double teaming me. That's not fair." Will tutted jokingly.

Elizabeth shrugged as she looked and Mia. Mia grinned in reply and the two females shot their dart guns, hitting Will in legs as they ran around the garden laughing. They continued to fire darts, missing targets by inches. Mia had been hit in the arms a few times and had managed to get Elizabeth twice and her father another three times before she ran back into the house squealing to avoid being hit by the adult's darts. Will and Elizabeth continued firing until they were both down to their last dart.

They were stood mere inches from each other, dart guns raised as they pressed it into each other's abdomens.

"Loser loads the dishwasher." Will quoted quietly.

"Question is, who will it be?" Elizabeth said teasingly, "Right now it's fifty-fifty."

"Well I could be nice and let you win…" Will grinned.

"You are a nice man…" Elizabeth whispered appreciatively.

"So…are you going to shoot me, Miss Bennet?"

He studied her carefully, watching as her lips trembled slightly and her green eyes closed as she took a deep breath in. Leaning forward towards her, he lowered his dart gun and cupped her cheek.

"Does it make you uncomfortable being this close?" Will whispered softly.

Elizabeth opened her eyes for a second before she closed them again and pressed her lips to his in a soft but brief kiss.

"Being close to you makes me forget myself." She admitted quietly.

Will smiled, a skip in his heartbeat at her admission. But despite her admission, he could see that it troubled her.

"Shall we go inside? We could call it a draw?" Will suggested.

Elizabeth looked up at him and smiled and both placed their Nerf guns on the ground and followed Mia inside the house.

ooOoo

Dinner had been a calm affair as they ate the chicken fajitas that Alice had prepared for them all. Elizabeth had helped Mia get ready for bed and then Will had tucked his daughter into bed after they read a chapter of Harry Potter together. When Mia was drifting off to sleep, Will came downstairs, having changed out of his work clothes.

"I'm off for an early night," Alice announced, "Thank you both for loading the dishwasher."

"Goodnight Alice." Elizabeth called, watching as the housekeeper walked up the stairs to her bedroom.

Elizabeth sat on the sofa, watching as Will joined her and flicked through the channels on the TV.

"Nothing on…" he commented.

"Well that's a shame…I can't stay for much longer anyway." Elizabeth sighed.

The two shared a look as Will scooted closer to her on the sofa, she didn't hesitate as he cupped her cheek again and held her gaze.

"I'd much rather kiss you for the short while before you have to go…" Will breathed.

Elizabeth brought her lips to his, kissing him lightly. The pace was slow, their foreheads touching together and their noses gently bumping as the kiss deepened. The TV flickered between adverts on the channel and the low volume of the TV filled the room but it was just background noise for Elizabeth. She could hear the hiked breath, the sound of their lips moving together growing in a more desperate pace. Will placed his hands on her hips, lifting her on to his lap as their kiss grew more heated.

His tongue moved in rhythm with hers, teasing her with the taste of chocolate ice-cream they had all had for dessert. The softness of his lips pressing hard against her own only made her shiver in delight, his fingers twitching at the waistband of her shorts and the hem of her t-shirt, but staying still. Will broke away from her lips, breathing heavily as he looked at her with a gaze filled with desire.

"Mmmm." Elizabeth moaned as Will moved his lips to her throat.

His lips kissed a tender spot on the curve of her neck where it met her shoulder and it caused her to let out a little giggle as his hands tightened on her back and squeezed her closer to him. Her hands combed through his hair, holding her to him until she pulled him gently away from her neck and pressed her lips to his urgently. He met her heated pace quickly, melding his hips to hers as they fell on to their sides, laying down side by side on the sofa as the heated kiss continued. Her legs wrapped around his waist, melding her hips to his as his hands moved lower, exploring the curves of her hips and her the tops of her thighs.

The way he kissed her with so much passion yet so much affection made her melt and drift into a blissful haze where there was nothing in the world around them whenever she was with him. Whatever it was that they were, Elizabeth was realising that Will was her safe place. She felt so at ease and could be exactly who she was with Will and he surprised her each time he did ensured that she was happy.

Will broke away from her lips, his hands gliding slowly over her bare legs, stopping at the base of her shorts. He kissed her neck, hitting a spot which made her breath hitch and her heart race faster with excitement.

"I think I've found a sensitive spot." Will whispered into her ear.

Elizabeth felt a shiver travel down her spine which only made her jerk her hips into his which caused him to groan.

"It seems I'm not the only one with a sensitive spot…" she teased in a low voice.

Will looked down at her and cupped her cheek before catching her lips again and kissed her heatedly. The pace was filled with a mutual need for each other. When Elizabeth was with him like this, her reservations didn't matter, she felt at ease and her growing need to be with him was all that mattered.

She felt a hardness press against her as Will ground his hips into hers as if involuntarily. Elizabeth moaned breathily as she broke off the kiss. As much as she wanted to…it wasn't the right time. She wasn't ready for that step just yet and she didn't want to cross more of a line tonight.

"We should stop…" she breathed with regret.

Will bit his lip but nodded, closing his eyes for a few moments and tried to regulate his breathing. He sat up, pulling her with him as they smiled at each other.

"You drive me wild." Will breathed happily.

Elizabeth smiled, giving his hand a squeeze.

"I'm sorry…I just think we still need to take this slow…"

"Don't apologise, I understand completely." Will replied softly but reassuringly.

Elizabeth stood up, giving him one last kiss before bidding him goodnight.

ooOoo

The sun was hanging low in the sky behind The Red Lion pub, the sky a mixture of blues, reds and purples as sunset was looming. It made the glossy red painted bricks on the building shine brighter as the sunlight bounced off it, causing Jane to close her eyes for a moment and take a deep breath. She had not set foot in this pub since before her pregnancy, but she knew that it had been the place George liked to frequent during their relationship. If there was one place that George would visit while back in Meryton, it was his old pub.

Opening her eyes and channelling the anxious beating of her heart into her force of determination, Jane stepped through the open doorway of the pub and entered the building. The interior hadn't changed, unless you counted the fading upholstery of the chairs and the chipped wood of the bar as changes. Her eyes scanned the half empty pub, noting that the regulars who had occupied it when she had last come here still frequented the pub. Her eyes fell on a man sitting at the end of the bar, drinking his usual pint with a sullen look on his face. Jane felt a surge of determination rush through her as she marched over to her ex and snatched his pint glass from him, pouring the remainder of his drink into his lap.

"HEY! Easy!" George yelled.

Jane slammed the glass down on to the bar before folding her arms across her chest, a look of anger etched on her face.

"What the fuck are you doing here? I'm not letting you anywhere near my children!" Jane growled.

George stood up from his bar stool and grabbed the dish towel the barman had left on the side of the bar, dabbing himself with it as if he stood a chance of drying himself completely.

"For the record, you wouldn't have those children if it weren't for me." George said with a grin.

Jane didn't even flinch at the sound the slap made as her right hand connected with George's cheek. She didn't even flinch when she saw the red mark or the sting she felt in her hand which indicated just how hard she had slapped him. The person she had been prior to her children had been born would have been remorseful for hurting George but now she didn't care how much her ex suffered.

"I hardly have you to thank, it's more the broken condom that's to thank. Now, what the fuck are you doing here?" Jane demanded.

George threw the dish towel back on to the bar and sighed heavily.

"I'm not here to interrupt your life or demand access to Peter and Lucy. But there are a few things I need to ask and you are the only one who can answer." He sighed.

Jane scoffed in disbelief.

"I assume you're not even going to ask about your children." She scolded.

"I know they're fine. You were always the better parent." George argued.

"Correction, I was the ONLY parent. Now get these questions out of the way so I can pretend you don't exist." Jane said impatiently.

George sat back down on the bar stool, looking at her with worry. She had never seen this look on George before, it nerved her.

"There's a woman that I'm involved with and she's having our baby-"

"Are you for real?" Jane laughed harshly, "You abandon the twins and then get someone else pregnant?"

"It's different!" George said weakly.

"How is this different? Are you going to marry this poor woman? Are you going to change? Nothing you can say to me can make me believe you're genuine towards this woman." Jane sneered.

"The baby has Down's, Jane." George said quietly, "And a chromosome deletion."

Jane's heart skipped a beat. Now she knew why George had come searching for her.

"Oh…"

"Is Lucy's condition inherited?" George asked desperately.

Jane shrugged.

"I know she didn't get it from me. I got tested, as did Peter, but you had already bolted the moment we got her diagnosis, so we don't know if she inherited it from you or not. It could be-"

"I took a note of the one detected in Lindsay's baby, is this the same one as Lucy?" George interrupted, pulling a piece of paper out of his pocket.

Jane took the paper and opened it up and saw the same letters and numbers that she had seen on her daughter's diagnosis letter three years ago. George's unborn child had the same chromosome deletion as it's half-sister. There was no way that this could be a coincidence. The chances of a parent having multiple children with the same deletion without it being inherited was exceedingly rare. She handed the paper back to George and nodded.

George banged his fist down on the bar, causing several of the customers to stop their conversations and look in their direction. Jane shifted uncomfortably where she stood.

"Fuck sake! I passed it on, didn't I?" George uttered angrily.

Jane shrugged.

"I can't give you that definite answer. You need to have a blood test and have it sent to the genetics lab. A geneticist will confirm if you have it or not." Jane said simply.

"It's not a fucking coincidence that two of the children I've spawned have the same fucking medical condition. This baby is already fucked because of the Down's, so what is this chromosome thing going to do to it?!" George spat.

Jane slapped him again, this time harder. She tried to restrain herself, but she couldn't fight it. How dare he say those things?!

"If that's going to be your attitude then that baby is better off never knowing you!" Jane growled.

George looked at her through narrowed eyes.

"Save the 'every child is a blessing' talk. What the fuck am I going to do now?" he demanded.

"How old are you?! You sound like a stroppy child! The twins have better manners than you!" Jane scolded.

"Can you guarantee that this baby will be okay? This one will be more disabled than the one I couldn't handle three years ago!"

"It doesn't matter how 'disabled' the baby will be George. The chromosome deletion is the reason Lucy has her struggles. The epilepsy, the sleep disorder, the autism, the speech and learning delay – all of it is hard. But do you know something? Life is fucking hard. Life isn't fair. Lucy didn't ask to be born this way, she just was and as her mother, I never give up on her the way you did. You couldn't see past her struggles and dismissed her as unworthy of your time, love and commitment. She learned to walk a year ago and she's just said her first word. With the right support, she will go so far. Further than you could ever imagine. This new baby will be the same. It's just a shame that in three years, you haven't changed for the better."

"So, what am I supposed to do, Jane?" George pleaded desperately.

"You go back to this poor woman and tell her the truth. You tell her that you need to get tested for the deletion and you tell her that you have two other children that you abandoned. You tell her what a worthless piece of scum you are and tell her that you have nothing to do with the children you abandoned because you couldn't handle a child with a disability. You tell that poor woman that you don't pay child support and you can't commit to anything. You get tested to confirm if you have it and then get the fucking snip because someone as irresponsible as you should stop breeding!" Jane replied bitterly.

With nothing more to say, Jane left her ex-boyfriend sitting at the bar and left to walk home.

Little did she know that in The Red Lion carpark, Lindsay Younge was sat in a taxi watching as George ran out of the pub and ran over to Jane, grabbing her arm and pleading with her. And all Lindsay Younge felt was the crushing and sinking feeling in her chest as her hand absentmindedly cradled her growing baby bump.


End file.
